UN Security Council extends Taliban sanctions monitoring mandate for 12 months

The UN Security Council has extended for 12 months the mandate of the team tasked with monitoring sanctions against the Taliban and its associated groups and individuals.

Unanimously adopting resolution 2816 (2026) under Chapter VII of the UN Charter, the 15-member Council decided that all States will continue to implement the sanctions measures laid out in resolution 2255 (2015). Those are imposed both on the Taliban and related “individuals, groups, undertakings and entities” that threaten Afghanistan’s peace, stability and security.

“Pakistan remains seriously concerned by the presence of terrorist groups on Afghan soil,” Pakistani Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad said after the adoption of the resolution, which was drafted by the United States.

These groups include TTP, BLA and Majeed Brigade, ISIL-K and Al Qaeda, he said, noting that they have been responsible for some of the most heinous terrorist attacks against Pakistan, as well as incidents of hostage-taking.

Just this month, 80 innocent people were killed in terrorist attacks in Pakistan,” Ambassador Asim Ahmad told the Security Council.

“We call upon the Taliban to prevent terrorist groups from carrying out such actions with impunity and to effectively combat terrorism by honouring their counter-terrorism commitments through sustained and verifiable actions in the interests of lasting peace and security.”

He welcomed the Council’s clear message to the Taliban through today’s adoption, noting that the text also emphasizes the many challenges facing the Afghan people, including drug trafficking, humanitarian crises and the human rights situation facing Afghan women and girls.

Urging the Taliban to address these issues urgently and change course, the Pakistani envoy added: “It is for the Taliban to decide what path they wish to choose for Afghanistan — whether it is the path to isolation, or the path to peace and prosperity as a responsible member of the international community.”

Under the terms of the resolution, it further renewed the mandate of the monitoring team charged with assisting the Afghanistan Sanctions Committee, which was first established in resolution 1988 (2011), for a period of 12 months from the date of its expiration this month.

Among other tasks, the Council directed the monitoring team to gather information on instances of non-compliance with sanctions, keep the Committee informed of such instances and to provide recommendations on actions to respond to non-compliance.