The Taliban’s top environment official wants the UN to include Afghanistan in climate talks

The Taliban’s top environment official on Monday called for Afghanistan’s inclusion in U.N. climate talks, saying extreme weather and water scarcity are having a “profound impact” on people’s lives and the economy. A Taliban delegation attended last year’s COP29 climate talks in Azerbaijan, but as observers. Matiul Haq Khalis, the head of the National Environmental Protection Agency, said the suspension of environmental protection projects after the Taliban takeover in 2021 had resulted in widespread harm to Afghans.