The State Department on Tuesday expressed concern over the composition of the new Afghan interim government announced by the Taliban, including the lack of female leaders and the past actions of some of those appointed to senior positions.
A State Department spokesman said in a statement shared with The Hill that although the Taliban “it has presented it as a provisional cabinet, “the U.S.” will judge the Taliban for their actions, not for words. ”
“We have made clear our expectation that the Afghan people deserve an inclusive government,” the spokesman added.
The statement went on to say that the list of names announced by the Taliban on Tuesday earlier “consists exclusively of people who are members of the Taliban or their close relatives and have no wives.”
The announced leaders come after last month the Taliban specifically called on women to join government offices in an apparent attempt to portray themselves as a more moderate version of the group that previously enforced extreme laws on women and girls, including -prevention of going to school. forbidding them to leave their house unless they were accompanied by a man.
The State Department also said Tuesday that it was “concerned about the affiliations and backgrounds of some of the people.”
Among the leaders announced on Tuesday was the election of the incumbent interior minister, Sarajuddin Haqqan, who is currently wanted by the FBI in connection with a 2008 attack on a hotel in Kabul that left six people dead, including a U.S. citizen.
The FBI had been offering a $ 5 million reward for information leading to Haqqan’s arrest, although he did has been increased to $ 10 million Tuesday later.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the government would be led by Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund, with group co-founder Abdul Ghani Baradar as deputy director of the caretaker government.
Although the Biden administration has been in contact with Taliban leaders to coordinate the evacuation of U.S. citizens and Afghan allies, the United States has not officially recognized the Taliban as the legitimate governing body of Afghanistan since of the country’s territorial takeover by the militant group last month.
The State Department spokesman added on Tuesday that the Biden administration “continue to keep the Taliban in their commitments to allow the safe passage of foreign and Afghan citizens with travel documents, including flight permits currently prepared to leave Afghanistan to agreed destinations. ”
“We also reiterate our clear expectation that the Taliban will ensure that Afghan soil is not used to threaten any other country and allow humanitarian access in support of the Afghan people,” the statement added. “The world is watching closely.”