Taliban vow to honour women's rights within Islamic law in Afghanistan

The Taliban said Tuesday they would respect women's rights, forgive those who resisted them and ensure a secure Afghanistan as part of a publicity blitz aimed at convincing world powers and a fearful population.

Following a lightning offensive across Afghanistan that saw many cities fall to the insurgents without a fight, the Taliban have sought to portray themselves as more moderate than when they imposed a brutal rule in the late 1990s. But many Afghans remain skeptical and thousands raced to the airport on Monday, desperate to flee the country.

Older generations remember the Taliban's ultraconservative Islamic views, which included severe restrictions on women as well as public stonings and amputations before they were ousted by the U.S-led invasion following the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.

Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban's longtime spokesperson, emerged from the shadows Tuesday in his first-ever public appearance to address those concerns at a news conference.

He promised the Taliban would honour women's rights, but within the norms of Islamic law. He did notelaborate.

The Taliban have encouraged women to return to work and have allowed girls to return to school, handing out Islamic headscarves at the door. A female news anchor interviewed a Taliban official on camera Monday in a televisionstudio, an interaction that once would have been unthinkable.

The treatment of women varies widely across the Muslim world,sometimes even within the same country, with rural areas tending to be far more conservative.

Some Muslim countries, including neighbouring Pakistan, have had female prime ministers, while ultraconservative Saudi Arabia only recently allowed women to drive.

Mujahid also said the Taliban would not allow Afghanistan to be used as a base for attacking other countries, as it was in the years before the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.

That assurance was part of a 2020 peace deal reached between the Taliban and the Trump administration that paved the way for the American withdrawal.

Western collaborators fear retribution

The Pentagon said U.S. commanders are communicating with the Taliban as they work to evacuate thousands of people through Kabul's international airport. It said the Taliban have taken no hostile actions there.

Mujahid reiterated that the Taliban have offered full amnesty to Afghans who worked for the U.S. and the Western-backed government, saying "nobody will go to their doors to ask why they helped."

He said private media should "remain independent" but that journalists "should not work against national values."

WATCH |Female judgesdoubt Taliban pledge to protect women's rights:

Female judges in Afghanistan afraid, doubt Taliban pledge to protect womens rights

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Two of the 270 female judges in Afghanistan say fear of reprisal has them burning records of their careers and they doubt the Talibans pledge to protect womens rights.

Kabul, the capital, has remained calm as the Taliban patrol its streets. But many remain fearful after prisons and armories emptied out during the insurgents' sweep across the country.

Kabul residents say groups of armed men have been going door-to-door seeking out individuals who worked with the ousted government and security forces, but it was unclear if the gunmen were Taliban or criminals posing as militants.

Mujahid blamed the security breakdown on the former government, saying the Taliban only entered Kabul in order to restore law and order after the police melted away.

A woman who worked as a broadcaster in Afghanistan said she was hiding at a relative's house, too frightened to return home much less go to work.

She said she and other women do not believe the Taliban have changed their ways and spoke on condition of anonymity because she feared for her safety.

A group of women wearing Islamic headscarves demonstrated briefly in Kabul, holding signs demanding the Taliban not "eliminate women" from public life.

Taliban project moderate tone

U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan said the U.S. and other governments will not simply take the Taliban at their word when it comes to women's rights.

"Like I've said all along, this is not about trust. This is about verify," Sullivan said at a White House briefing. "And we'll see what the Taliban end up doing in the days and weeks ahead, and when I say we, I mean the entire international community."

Whatever their true intentions, the Taliban have an interest in projecting moderation to prevent the international community from isolating their government, as it did in the 1990s.

WATCH |Candidates address Afghanistan crisis on campaign trail:

Candidates address Afghanistan crisis on campaign trail

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The major political parties have been addressing the Talibans victory in Afghanistan on the federal campaign trail, including how theyd each deal with the country and assist those who helped Canadas mission.

The European Union said it was suspending development assistance to Afghanistan until the political situation is more clear but that it would consider boosting humanitarian aid.

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said the Taliban must respect UNSecurity Council resolutions and human rights to earn access to some 1.2 billion euros ($1.77billion Cdn) in development funds earmarked through 2024.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said Britain might provide up to 10 per centmore humanitarian aid, but thatthe Taliban would not get any money previously earmarked for security.

Evacuations resume

Evacuation flights resumed after being suspended on Monday, when thousands of people rushed the airport. In shocking scenes captured on video, some clung to a plane as it took off and then fell to their deaths. At least seven people died in the airport chaos, U.S. officials said.

The Canadian Armed Forces said Tuesday that it is committed to helping Afghans "who are at risk due to their close and enduring relationship with Canada" fly out of Afghanistan.

"The CAF currently has assets forward deployed to the region, and additional air assets are on their way into the region starting tonight," said the CAF in a statement, adding chartered flights transporting Afghan citizens arrived in Toronto on Monday evening and Tuesday afternoon.

WATCH |NATO says Taliban must allow anyone to leave Afghanistan:

NATO says Taliban must allow anyone to leave Afghanistan

3 years ago

Duration 2:04

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg warned the Taliban that it faces international isolation if it does not respect the rights of all Afghans.

Canada has set up a special immigration program for Afghans still in the war-torn country and has several evacuation flights to date, Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau has said. It also hasestablished a separate stream for refugees who've made it out of Afghanistan and ispromising to resettle up to 20,000 people.

On Tuesday, the Taliban entered the civilian half of the airport, firing into the air to drive out around 500 people there, said an Afghan official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to brief journalists.

The Taliban appeared to be trying to control the crowd rather than prevent people from leaving. A video circulating online appeared to show Taliban members supervising the orderly departure of dozens of foreigners.

The U.S. Embassy in Kabul, now operating from the military side of the airport, urged Americans to register online for evacuation but not to come to the airport before being contacted.

The German Foreign Ministry said a first German military transport plane landed in Kabul but took off with only seven people on board due to the chaos. Another left later with 125 people.

Talks continue

U.S. President Joe Biden has defended his decision to end America's longest war, blaming the rapid Taliban takeover on Afghanistan's Western-backed government and security forces. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg echoed that assessment, while saying the alliance must investigate the flaws in its efforts to train the Afghan military.

Talks continued Tuesday between the Taliban and several Afghan politicians, including former President Hamid Karzai and Abdullah Abdullah, who once headed the country's negotiating council. The Taliban have said they want to form an "inclusive, Islamic government."

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Paul Miller, the former director for Afghanistan and Pakistan on the U.S. National Security Council staff, said the Afghan military 'collapsed' without support from the international community, including U.S. troops that President Joe Biden had committed to pulling out of the country.

The talks focused on how a Taliban-dominated government would operate given the changes in Afghanistan over the last 20 years, rather than just dividing up ministries, officials with knowledge of the negotiations said on condition of anonymity to discuss the closed-door talks.

A top Taliban leader, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, arrived in Kandahar on Tuesday night from Qatar, potentially signaling a deal is close at hand.

The vice-president of the ousted government, meanwhile, tweeted that he was the country's "legitimate" caretaker president. Amrullah Saleh said that under the constitution, he should be in charge because President Ashraf Ghani has fled the country.