10/07/2021 Afghanistan (International Christian Concern) – Russia will invite Taliban representatives to Moscow for talks to take place on October 20, according to a Thursday announcement from President Vladimir Putin’s special representative. The invitation comes on the coattails of Pakistan launching a campaign encouraging the international community to work with Taliban leadership.
In March, Moscow also hosted an international conference of Afghanistan which called on warring sides in Afghanistan to reach a peaceful agreement in addition to calling on the Taliban not to launch any more offensives in the spring and summer months.
The United States completed its withdrawal from Afghanistan at the end of August, a time marked by chaos and disorder at the Kabul airport and surrounding areas.
The Taliban made calls for a general amnesty for all Afghans, but reports of threats, violence, intimidation, and persecution of at-risk communities by the Taliban are beginning to surface.
These at-risk communities include the roughly 8,000 -12,000 Afghan Christians who are made up predominantly of converts from Islam, making them subject to the deadliest punishments in accordance with the Taliban’s extremist interpretation of Shariah law and Islam.
Matias Perttula, Director of Advocacy at International Christian Concern, said, “Christians are one of the most persecuted communities in Afghanistan. Maneuvers that legitimize the Taliban are actions that condone the Taliban’s atrocious treatment of its minority communities and severely at-risk communities, including Christians.”
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