UN rights chief blasts ‘lack of inclusivity’ of Taliban government

UN rights chief Michelle Bachelet criticizes the new Taliban interim government in Afghanistan, which is drawn exclusively from loyalist ranks and counts no women.

Speaking before the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, Bachelet says she is “dismayed by the lack of inclusivity of the so-called caretaker cabinet, which includes no women and few non-Pashtuns.”

Taliban fighters take control of the Afghan presidential palace after President Ashraf Ghani fled the country, in Kabul, Afghanistan, August 15, 2021. (AP Photo/Zabi Karimi)

The announcement of the government last week was a key step in the Taliban’s consolidation of power over Afghanistan, following a stunning military victory that saw them oust the US-backed administration on August 15.

Notorious for their brutal and oppressive rule from 1996 to 2001, the Taliban had promised a more inclusive government this time.