KABUL – Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi held a press conference on Sunday at the Afghanistan Embassy in New Delhi that included women journalists, following a request from the Indian government.
The move came after widespread criticism over the exclusion of female reporters from a similar press briefing two days earlier.
Muttaqi said the earlier event had been organized on short notice, and only a limited number of journalists were invited.
“It was mostly a technical issue,” he said. “Our colleagues had decided to send invitations to a specific list of journalists. There was no other intention behind it.”
Indian media had reported that Taliban officials barred women journalists from attending the previous press conference, sparking outrage among Indian politicians and activists who called the move an insult to “Indian women” and the country’s “democracy.”
Several members of India’s parliament condemned the incident and urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to clarify his government’s stance.
According to Indian media reports, the Ministry of External Affairs subsequently asked Muttaqi to hold another press briefing open to women journalists, a request that led to Sunday’s event.
