US puts Pakistan and Taliban under ‘Particular Concern’ category

A Taliban fighter (right) and residents stand next to the bodies of civilians who lost their lives following an operation by Taliban members against Islamic State-Khorasan, in Kandahar. Pic/AFP

The United States (US) Secretary of State Antony Blinken has re-designated Pakistan as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) for violating religious freedom and also rebranded the Taliban as an Entity of Particular Concern, according to a Dawn news report. The administration of former President Donald Trump first placed Pakistan on this list in December 2018 and retained it in 2020 as well. The Joe Biden administration, which came to power in January this year, has retained the old list with two changes, adding Russia and removing Sudan from the CPC category, said the Dawn news report.

In a statement issued by the State Department on Wednesday, Blinken said, "Each year the Secretary of State has the responsibility to identify governments and non-state actors, who, because of their religious freedom violations, merit designation under the International Religious Freedom Act. I am designating Burma, China, Eritrea, Iran, the DPRK, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan as Countries of Particular Concern for having engaged in or tolerated "systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom." DPRK is the official name of North Korea.

"I am also placing Algeria, Comoros, Cuba and Nicaragua on a Special Watch List for governments that have engaged in or tolerated ‘severe violations of religious freedom'," he was quoted as saying.

Taliban ropes in aid agencies

The Taliban-led government in Afghanistan has signed agreements with three leading aid agencies in a bid to support hundreds of thousands of displaced families ahead of the winter season. The Ministry of Refugee Affairs said that it recently signed three MoUs with ACTED-Afghanistan, Organization for Relief Development, and International Rescue Committee.

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