The European Union on Thursday condemned the recent deadly attack by the Taliban in Afghanistan and called for an “emergency, comprehensive and permanent ceasefire.”
In a statement, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell and EU Aid and Crisis Management Commissioner Janez Lenarcic accused the Taliban of violating their promise to seek peace negotiations.
They said: “This kind of meaningless violence is causing great suffering to Afghan citizens and increasing the number of internally displaced persons seeking safety and shelter.”
The statement continued: “The Taliban’s military offensive directly violated their commitment to resolve the conflict through negotiation and the Doha peace process.”
“Violation of international humanitarian law and human rights principles continues to shake the country, especially in areas controlled by the Taliban, such as arbitrary and extrajudicial killings of civilians, open beatings of women and destruction of infrastructure,” it said.
“Some of these actions may constitute war crimes and must be investigated. Those responsible Taliban fighters or commanders must be held accountable.”
The statement specifically mentioned three recent attacks, one of which attacked the United Nations Office in Herat, attacked Lashkar Gah, killed 40 civilians, and attacked the residence of the Minister of Defense in Kabul.
“The EU calls for an urgent, comprehensive and permanent ceasefire to give peace a chance,” EU officials said.
Fighting in the prolonged conflict in Afghanistan began to intensify in May, when the United States and other foreign forces began the first phase of withdrawal that will be completed later this month.
The Taliban have taken control of large areas of rural areas and are now challenging the Afghan government forces in several large cities.
