Taliban Wants To Address UN General Assembly This Week: Report

The Taliban has raised questions over Afghanistan’s previous ambassador in the United Nations (UN) and instead it wants to address the general assembly of the international body.

Apparently, the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres received a list of the Afghan delegation for the organisation’s 76^th General Assembly from the accredited Afghan ambassador Ghulam Isaczai on 15^th September.

However, five days later, another communication on the letterhead of the “Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, Ministry of Foreign Affairs” that was signed by the country’s foreign minister Ameer Khan Muttaqi was directed to Guterras.

In this letter, the Taliban requested the UN to let it participate in the gathering.

Muttaqi further added that former Afghan President Ashraf Ghani was dismissed on 15^th August and thus the world ‘no longer recognizes him as president’. Therefore, he asserted that ambassador Isaczai doesn’t represent Afghanistan.

The Taliban thus made it clear that it is nominating Mohammed Suhail Shaheen as the new permanent representative of the UN.

The UN credentials committee would take certain time to deliberate over this issue, Associated Press reports.

However, certain suggestions indicate that Taliban will not be allowed to represent itself in this week’s session of the general assembly at least.

As per the schedule, Afghanistan would give the final speech on the last day of the slated high-level meeting on 27^th September.