UN Rights Rapporteur Warns of Taliban Crackdown on Dissent

Richard Bennett, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan, warned on Friday, September 25, during the UN General Assembly in New York, about the intensifying crackdown on dissent by the Taliban.

He stressed that despite creating a climate of fear and restricting civil society, the Taliban cannot prevent the international community from monitoring their actions. Bennett underlined that the Taliban are systematically working to silence all critical voices in the public sphere.

According to him, the Taliban refuse to cooperate with international human rights bodies, including his own mandate, and block international organizations from entering the country. He added that shutting doors on monitors will not conceal realities from the world.

Bennett noted that by obstructing documentation of human rights abuses, the Taliban aim to avoid accountability. However, he said the international community continues to find ways to record violations.

His remarks come after two years of mounting reports of violence against protesters, restrictions on civil society groups, and pressure on the media in Afghanistan. These developments have triggered international concern over the future of human rights under Taliban rule.