HRC63 – Iceland GC – A/HRC/63/L.8: Situation of human rights in Afghanistan
Human Rights Council - 63rd Session
General Comment on draft resolution A/HRC/63/L.8
Situation of human rights in Afghanistan
Statement by Iceland
5 October 2026
President,
Iceland thanks the European Union for presenting draft resolution L.8 on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan and welcomes the renewal of the mandate of the Special Rapporteur.
The human rights situation in Afghanistan remains a cause of grave concern, where women and girls continue to face systematic and institutionalised discrimination and exclusion from virtually all areas of public life. Continued restrictions on their access to education and employment, on the basis of new decrees that institutionalise discrimination in all aspects of live, have a devastating effect on the future of over half the population.
It is crucial that Afghan women and girls are not only the subject of our discussions but are able to participate meaningfully in them and have their voices and experiences heard directly by this Council and the international community. Iceland therefore warmly welcomes the reintroduction of an enhanced interactive dialogue on the rights of women and girls to be held at the upcoming 65th session next June, providing an important platform for them to share their experiences directly.
President,
We call on the de facto authorities to fulfil Afghanistan’s international human rights obligations and reverse policies and decrees that violate them.
We must make full use of the tools available to this Council to address the human rights crisis in Afghanistan, advance accountability for past and ongoing violations and abuses, and prevent their recurrence. In this regard, the independent monitoring and reporting of the Special Rapporteur is critical to compliment the work of the International Investigative Mechanism established last year.
In closing, Iceland supports draft resolution L.8 and urges all members of the Council to adopt it by consensus.
I thank you.