A Taliban spokesman for a wedding attack in Afghanistan: The attacker has been arrested, not a Taliban militant

Source: Global Times

According to the Afghan Dawn News Network, on the evening of October 29, a shooting incident occurred in Nangarhar province, near Pakistan in eastern Afghanistan, where three armed men claiming to be the Taliban attacked a wedding, killing two people and injuring dozens. According to the victims' families, the attackers were infuriated by the music played at the wedding site, which destroyed musical instruments in addition to attacking crowds.

Nangarhar Governorate

On October 30, Taliban spokesman Mujahid said the interim government was currently investigating the incident and that two of the attackers, neither of whom were Taliban militants, had been arrested. The initial verdict was that the attackers were acts of personal violence and revenge in the name of the Taliban. Under the Taliban government, social chaos in Afghanistan continues, especially the rights and interests of vulnerable people are difficult to protect. On October 20, a number of Afghan and Indian media reported the killing of a former Afghan women's volleyball player by the Taliban, which was subsequently reprinted by western media, causing widespread public concern. After investigation, it was found that in fact, the female volleyball player died on August 5 in the "honor murder" of her fiancé's family, that is, on the grounds of the so-called "preservation of women's reputation", relatives killed women who did not accept traditional constraints.

Amina Khan, a senior researcher on Afghanistan at the Institute of Strategic Studies in Islamabad, Pakistan, said in an interview with the Global Times that because the Taliban adopted strict religious management measures during their rule in Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001, especially the public brutal punishment of women, the domestic and international community in Afghanistan did not trust the Afghan interim government, which is currently led by the Taliban, and this was widely disseminated.

Amina said that although the Taliban are currently taking a moderate policy stance on women's rights to education, work and other rights, in fact, there is a strong conservative cultural atmosphere in Afghanistan. A large number of men, including the Taliban's grassroots personnel, do not accept the moderate statements released by the Tajita provisional government, so no matter what the Taliban's top brass says, there is still a long way to go to ensure the safety and legitimate rights and interests of Afghan women.

According to the reporter's understanding in many parts of Afghanistan, a large number of women did not return to work after the Taliban took over power, but fell into suspension or unemployment. Much of the Taliban's moderate policies toward women remain rhetorical. In addition, according to Western media reports, women in many parts of Afghanistan are still fighting for their rights and interests through demonstrations and other means, and although the Taliban have been controlling these marches in a more restrained manner, they have not taken any measures to respond to the questions raised by the marches.

According to several reports by United Nations agencies, Afghanistan is currently facing a severe food and economic crisis, with large numbers of people still homeless. As winter approaches, Afghanistan is at high risk of a serious humanitarian catastrophe in which vulnerable groups such as women, children and the elderly will have a harder time surviving.