Kabul (Monitoring Desk) — To mark five years since the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan, Afghans held protest demonstrations and rallies in 24 cities across various countries, including Canada, Germany and the Netherlands. Protests were held in several German cities, including Bonn, Munich, Stuttgart, Hamburg, Berlin, Kiel, Frankfurt, Cologne and Düsseldorf, while Afghans also demonstrated in Switzerland, the Netherlands, Finland, Norway, Austria, Sweden, Spain, Pakistan, Canada and the United States. At various locations, protesters chanted slogans against the Taliban, established protest camps, launched petition campaigns and, in some places, also went on hunger strikes. Protesters opposed normalizing relations with the Taliban government and demanded the protection of women's rights, freedom of expression and the press, and human rights. Strong anti-Taliban slogans were raised during a protest at Queen's Park in Toronto. In Amsterdam, protesters called on the Netherlands and the European Union not to recognize the Taliban, while demonstrators protesting outside the United Nations office in Geneva chanted slogans against the Taliban government. In Stuttgart and Hamburg, Germany, protesters chanted “Bread, Work, Freedom” and called on the international community and the German government to hold the Taliban accountable. According to observers, the increase in protest activities against the Taliban government in different countries reflects the dissatisfaction of a section of Afghans with the Taliban's policies regarding women's rights and other fundamental freedoms.
