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Security Council Taliban Leader Accuses Annan Of Bias
UN Wire
February 23, 2000
Mullah Mohammed Omar, the leader of Afghanistan's ruling Taliban, on Monday accused UN Secretary General Kofi Annan of bias against the regime. Omar said he was particularly angered by Annan's criticism of the Taliban last week for bombing civilians in the Panjshir valley.
"You didn't bother to investigate the accusation, and you went ahead and made your statement even though there was no truth to the opposition's accusations," Omar said in a letter to Annan. "You are supporting the opposition. You are making the people of Afghanistan believe that the United Nations is not neutral, that it is biased against the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan."
The United Nations does not recognize the Taliban as Afghanistan's legitimate government. Instead, it supports the regime of ousted President Burhanuddin Rabbani as the rightful government in the country. Rabbani's faction, however, controls only 10% of Afghan territory (Amir Shah, Associated Press/Nando.net, 21 Feb).
Russian FM Calls West Hypocritical On Afghan, Chechen Human Rights
Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov said Monday that Western policies toward human rights in Chechnya and Afghanistan are hypocritical. Ivanov, who met with ousted Afghan Foreign Minister Mohammad Abdulla that day, said the Taliban's human rights violations have not been met with an adequate international response.
In contrast, Ivanov said, the West has strongly criticized Russia's actions in Chechnya while ignoring the Afghanistan situation. Ivanov also expressed concern over the resurgence of international terrorism in both Chechnya and Afghanistan. Last week, Omar called on the Islamic world to support Chechnya's Muslim rebels in their fight against Russian "barbarians" (Agence France-Presse/Russia Today, 22 Feb).
More Information on Afghan Sanctions
