KABUL, Afghanistan — The foreign minister in Afghanistan’s new Taliban-run Cabinet says the government remains committed to its promises not to allow militants to use its territory to attack others.
In his first press conference since the Taliban formed an interim government a week ago, Molavi Amir Khan Muttaqi on Tuesday would not give a timeframe for how long the government would be in place or whether it would eventually be opened up to other factions, minorities or women.
When asked about the possibility of elections, Muttaqi demanded other countries not interfere in Afghanistan’s internal issues.
___
MORE ON AFGHANISTAN:
— UN seeks $606 million for Afghanistan after Taliban takeover
— Once inmates, Taliban now in charge in a Kabul prison
— Taliban: Women can study in gender-segregated universities
— Kabul flag shop that started in Soviet era retools yet again
___
HERE’S WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING:
UNITED NATIONS — The U.N. humanitarian chief says $1.2 billion has been promised to help Afghans facing a growing humanitarian crisis in the country and millions in the region, calling the pledges “an important step” toward helping the needy.
Undersecretary-General Martin Griffiths announced the total in pledges at the closing of a high-level ministerial meeting in Geneva on Monday that was seeking $606 million until the end of the year to help 11 million people.
Griffiths says the $1.2 billion includes funding for that appeal as well as the regional response to the Afghan crisis, which U.N. refugee chief Filippo Grandi spoke about from Kabul.
Griffiths is urging donors to turn the pledges into cash contributions as fast as possible, saying that “the funding will throw a lifeline to Afghans” who lack food, health care and protection.
He says the meeting showed solidarity with the Afghan people but adds that “Afghanistan faces a long and hard road ahead” and this “is far from the end of the journey.”
