UN Human Rights Council 60: UK Statement for OHCHR report and oral update of the Special Rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan

Thank you, Mr Vice President, Special Rapporteur, Deputy High Commissioner and distinguished panellists.

Like others in this room, the United Kingdom stands in solidarity with the Afghan people following the recent devastating earthquake in Kunar Province. We are a leading humanitarian donor, and have announced £1 million in emergency funding to deliver critical healthcare and emergency supplies to support affected families.

Special Rapporteur,

We would like to reiterate the UK's unwavering support for your mandate. We appreciate your commitment to exposing the grave human rights situation in Afghanistan.

Four years on, Taliban repression is intensifying. Women and girls face an increasingly dire reality, with over a hundred edicts issued since 2021 that systematically restrict their rights and freedoms.

We are deeply alarmed by the Taliban's public floggings and executions of men, women and boys carried out by the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, and by the rising number of arrests of women for alleged dress code violations. These and other oppressive measures must be reversed to uphold the rights of all Afghans.

We, the international community, must continue to exert coordinated pressure and remain united with the people of Afghanistan.

Thank you.