Talks with the Taliban in Doha, led by Tom West, the US special envoy to Afghanistan, have been canceled, a State Department source told reporters.
The source said that besides Tom West, US Special Envoy for Afghan Women and Girls Reena Amiri had also gone to Doha for the talks.
The United States has decided to cancel the visit after the Afghan Taliban extended a ban on girls’ schools in Afghanistan beyond the sixth grade.
On Saturday and Sunday, US envoys to Qatar were scheduled to discuss key economic issues with the Taliban.
Meanwhile, Reuters news agency quoted sources in the US State Department as saying that the Qatari plane was scheduled to fly to Kabul and send a delegation led by Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Mottaki to Doha, the Afghan capital. You have not been sent.
Girls of all ages are expected to return to school this week, including in secondary schools across Afghanistan.
But the Taliban announced two days ago, contrary to earlier statements and promises, that “girls’ secondary schools will remain closed until a final decision is made on Islamic hijab and other conditions.”
The Taliban’s decision provoked widespread and violent reactions at home and internationally, and was condemned by the United Nations, the European Union, the United States and many other international organizations.
Girls of all ages are expected to return to school this week, including in secondary schools across Afghanistan.
Now, a State Department official has told Reuters the Taliban’s decision runs counter to its commitments to Afghans and the international community.
“We have canceled some of our meetings with the Taliban, including the one in Doha,” the official said. “We have made it clear to them that this decision could change the nature of our relationship with them.”
The meeting between the Americans and the Taliban was scheduled to take place on the sidelines of an international conference called the Doha Forum.
Representatives from the United Nations and the World Bank were expected to attend the meeting, to discuss humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, the independence of Afghanistan’s central bank and the printing of Afghani or banknotes.
