What is in news : The United Nations Security Council, under the Presidency of India, adopted a resolution on the situation in Afghanistan

Situation in Afghanistan :

• The Taliban seized power in Afghanistan on August 15, 2021.
• They captured the country two weeks before the United States was set to complete its troop withdrawal, ending the longest war in US history.
• This seizing also forced Afghan President Ashraf Ghani to flee to the United Arab Emirates.

Resolution  :

• Demanded that the war-torn country, Afghanistan, not be used to threaten or attack any nation or shelter terrorists.
• Put forward by the US, UK and France.
• Adopted with the votes of 13 Council members in favour.
• Permanent members Russia and China abstained from the voting.

Who are Taliban :

• Sunni fundamentalist organisation
• Also a military group that is involved in an insurgency
• Controlled almost three-quarters of the country from 1996 to 2001 and was notorious for their strict implementation of the Sharia or Islamic law there.
• Widespread abuse of human rights, especially targeted against women.
• The current head of the Taliban is Hibatullah Akhundzada.
• Mullah Omar is regarded as the founder of the Taliban. He died in 2013.
• The Taliban officially refers to itself as the ‘Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan’.
• The word ‘Taliban’ in Pashto means ‘students’.

About UNSC

• One of the organs of the United Nations
• Charged with the maintenance of international peace and security
• Powers include :
  • Establishment of peacekeeping operations
  • Establishment of international sanctions
  • Authorization of military action through Security Council resolutions
• Only UN body with the authority to issue binding resolutions to member states.
• Members: The Security Council consists of fifteen members. Russia, the United Kingdom, France, China, and the United States—serve as the body’s five permanent members.
• These permanent members can veto any substantive Security Council resolution, including those on the admission of new member states or candidates for Secretary-General.
• The Security Council also has 10 non-permanent members, elected on a regional basis to serve two-year terms. The body’s presidency rotates monthly among its members.