KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – Afghanistan is enduring the most extreme and systematic assault on gender equality of our time, UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan Richard Bennett warned in his latest report, urging states not to normalize the Taliban and to stand firm on human rights.
In his report Situation of Human Rights in Afghanistan, presented to the UN General Assembly on Thursday, Bennett stated that dismantling the Taliban’s entrenched gender persecution and addressing widespread rights abuses requires urgent, principled, and sustained international action.
“The severity of the situation cannot be overstated,” Bennett said, calling for continued international pressure rather than acceptance of the Taliban as the de facto authorities.
Bennett said women must be placed at the center of all political and decision-making processes. He raised concern over a rise in corporal punishment, arbitrary detentions, enforced disappearances of former officials, and further restrictions on media and civil society.
He warned that Afghanistan’s humanitarian crisis is deepening, driven by international funding cuts and Taliban bans on women aid workers, which he described as unprecedented. He urged countries to restore long-term support, particularly for Afghan and women-led organizations.
The UN expert also said the Taliban’s dismissal of ethnic and religious grievances is fueling tensions, and called for an end to discriminatory policies and greater representation of minority communities in decision making.
Bennett noted that abuses against ethnic, religious and linguistic groups remain under-documented. He cited attacks by Islamic State Khorasan Province targeting Hazaras, saying they “bear all the hallmarks of international crimes”.
He further reported a rise in online hate speech and ethnic discrimination, including slurs against Hazaras and the conflation of Pashtuns with Taliban supporters. He urged Afghans to refrain from hate rhetoric and respect equal rights for all communities.
Taliban authorities have not yet responded to Bennett’s latest reports. However, they have previously rejected his findings, accusing him of “spreading propaganda” and providing “inaccurate and misleading” information. They have also barred him from entering Afghanistan.
