Kabul: The Afghan Taliban government’s acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi has called on the United States to immediately release the country’s foreign reserves, calling the freezing of its assets by the US illegal, Tolo News reported.
He stressed that the US decision has severely disrupted the natural course of Afghanistan’s economic development, impacting its already debilitated treasury.
Muttaqi also urged the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to help Afghanistan battle its socio-economic challenges and fulfil their humanitarian and religious duties by using all their resources to lift the US sanctions.
In his statement, Muttaqi said: “After two decades of war in Afghanistan, the US has frozen the national wealth of the Afghan people, creating major challenges for the country’s natural economic growth. I once again call on the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and its member states to ensure the release of Afghanistan’s frozen central bank assets without further delay or obstacles.”
US announces up to $5 million rewardThe US has announced a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to the location and release of Mahmoud Habibi, an Afghan-American businessman who was detained by the Taliban’s intelligence service on August 10, 2022, Reuters reported. According to a State Department notice, Habibi, a former civil aviation chief under Afghanistan’s ousted Western-backed government, and his driver were seized along with 29 other employees of the Kabul telecommunications firm for which he worked. Reuters reported that the Taliban deny holding Habibi. |
