The Security Council has extended the mandate of United Nations assistance operation in Afghanistan until March 17, 2018, stressing political mission’s role in supporting an inclusive Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process, The Nation reports.
Unanimously, adopting a new resolution, the 15-member council also requested the Secretary-General to conduct a strategic review of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) and report back on the results of this exercise by July 2017, in order to ensure effective support for the mission.
On the human rights front, the council requested continued support efforts to strengthen the protection of children affected by armed conflict and reiterated the importance of accelerating establishment of a fair and transparent justice system.
In that vein, the council emphasized the importance of ensuring access for relevant organizations to all prisons and places of detention in Afghanistan.
