Iranian Envoy Skips Meeting With Afghan Civil Society & Women At Taliban's Behest

Diplomatic sources revealed to Afghanistan International that Hassan Kazemi Qomi, Iran's special envoy, abstained from meeting with Afghan civil society and women representatives at the Doha meeting, adhering to the Taliban's demand.

Similarly, the Russian delegation also opted out of participating in a session with Afghan attendees in Doha.

Till now, the Islamic Republic's officials have not yet issued an official statement regarding their representative's non-engagement with Afghan participants during the Doha discussions.

Sources present in Doha disclosed that on the conference's second day, special envoys from various nations engaged in a collective meeting with figures from Afghan civil society and women's groups.

It was also reported that delegates from certain countries held separate dialogues with Afghan participants of the Doha meeting.

Nonetheless, envoys from Russia and Iran decided against joining any meeting that included Afghan representatives in Doha.

The Russian Foreign Ministry shed light on this decision, alleging that the selection of these representatives occurred "in a non-transparent way" without the Taliban's approval.

Representatives for Afghan civil society and women at the Doha conference included Shahgul Rezaie, Mahbouba Seraj, Metra Mehran, Faiz Zaland, and Lotfullah Najafizada.

The Taliban's stipulations for attending the Doha event were rebuffed, leading to the absence of the group's representatives from Qatar. A notable demand from the Taliban was their insistence on being the exclusive representatives of the Afghan populace at the meeting.