Taliban to woo Afghans in exile

ISTANBUL

The interim government in Afghanistan formed a commission Wednesday to woo Afghans living outside the country.

Dr. Muhammad Naeem, a spokesman for the Taliban, which calls itself the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, said the commission will be headed by Interim Minister of Minerals and Petroleum Sheikh Shahabuddin Delawar.

The Repatriation and Relationship of Afghan Personalities' commission “will liaise with Afghans who have left the country so that they can return to their homeland and live in peace with their Afghan brothers instead of foreign countries,” Naeem said on Twitter.

He said the decision was made by the Cabinet led by Interim Prime Minister Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhand.

The commission will have six members including Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi, interim foreign minister; Sheikh Muhammad Khalid Hanafi, interim minister for the propagation of virtue and the prevention of vice; Mullah Khair Allah KhairKhawa, interim minister of culture and information; Abdul Haq Wathiq, the head of General Directorate of Intelligence, and Fasihudin Fitrat, the chief of the Army Staff, and Muhammad Anas Haqqani, a scholar and Taliban leader.

Hundreds of Afghans are living outside the war-torn country for years in search of a better life. Decades of conflict have forced people to leave the country.

When the Taliban returned to rule last August after the exit of foreign forces, many Afghans fled, including those who were part of previous US-backed administrations.

But with improvements in the security situation, as cited by the UN, the interim government has assured a secure future.

But Afghanistan, home to around 40 million people, is facing a humanitarian crisis -- a situation exacerbated by the US decision to block Afghan foreign reserves.

The interim government is yet to attain international recognition.

And Washington decided to release half of the $7 billion to Afghanistan and the other half to victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

The Taliban has been insisting that all foreign reserves belong to Afghans and should be returned.