Taliban Envoy Meets Indonesian Muhammadiyah Leaders to Discuss Cooperation

Mawlawi Saadullah Baloch, the Taliban-appointed envoy to Jakarta, recently met with Professor Shafiq Mughni and several prominent members of Indonesia’s Muhammadiyah party.

According to the Taliban-run embassy, the meeting aimed to explore potential cooperation in the fields of education and healthcare. However, given the Taliban’s widespread restrictions within Afghanistan, the sincerity and impact of such initiatives on the lives of Afghans have been called into question.

A statement from the embassy described Muhammadiyah as one of Indonesia’s largest non-governmental organizations, actively engaged in providing social services, including education and health. The Islamic organization, with over a century of history, is regarded as one of the most influential civil society movements in the country.

This development comes as the Taliban continue to severely restrict access to education, particularly for girls, and as Afghanistan’s healthcare system faces major crises. As a result, promises of international cooperation by Taliban officials appear more symbolic than substantive, especially in light of the group’s human rights record.