Kabul-Sana
The United Nations envoy to Afghanistan, Deborah Lyons, called on the Taliban today to stop their attacks on cities and commit to a political settlement, calling on the UN Security Council to issue a clear warning to the militants after the war entered a "more bloody and destructive phase."
Reuters quoted Lyons as saying during a meeting of the UN Security Council on Afghanistan that "attacking cities is intentionally to inflict severe damage and inflict heavy casualties on civilians, yet it appears that threatening major cities is a strategic decision by the Taliban," adding that countries communicating with the militants should: It warns them that a government imposed by force in Afghanistan will not be recognized.
Peace talks between the Afghan government and Taliban negotiators began last year but have not made any substantive progress.
The Taliban has intensified its attacks on Afghan cities and towns recently with the aim of controlling them. According to previous reports of the United Nations mission in Afghanistan, 5,183 civilians were killed between January and June as a result of violence in the country, an increase of 47 percent compared to the same period last year.