US cancels Doha talks with Taliban over girls school closure

The United States has cancelled planned talks in Doha with the Taliban after the hardline Islamist rulers of Afghanistan shut girls secondary schools, US officials say.

“On Tuesday, we joined millions of Afghan families in expressing our deep disappointment with the Taliban’s decision to not allow women and girls to return to secondary school,” a State Department spokesperson says.

“We have canceled some of our engagements, including planned meetings in Doha around the Doha Forum, and made clear that we see this decision as a potential turning point in our engagement,” the spokesperson says.

The Taliban, which seized power in August and is eager for international recognition, shut down girls schools this week just hours after reopening them.

“This decision by the Taliban, if it is not swiftly reversed, will profoundly harm the Afghan people, the country’s prospects for economic growth, and the Taliban’s ambition to improve their relations with the international community,” the spokesperson says.

“We stand with Afghan girls and their families, who see education as a path to realizing the full potential of Afghanistan’s society and economy.”