What changed

B100416/2025

B100418/2025

European Parliament resolution on the situation in Afghanistan: supporting women and communities affected by the recent earthquakes

The European Parliament,

– having regard to Council Decision 2011/486/CFSP of 1 August 2011 concerning restrictive measures directed against certain individuals, groups, undertakings and entities in view of the situation in Afghanistan,

− having regard to its previous resolutions on Afghanistan,

– having regard to the EU-Afghanistan Joint Declaration on Migration Cooperation, signed on 26 April 2021,

– having regard to the Council conclusions of 14 November 2022 on women, peace and security, and to the Council conclusions of 15 September 2021 on Afghanistan, which outlined five benchmarks for EU engagement with the Taliban-led de facto authorities,

– having regard to the ongoing Trans-Afghan Railway project and regional connectivity initiatives,

– having regard to the statements by the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy on Afghanistan,

– having regard to the recognition of the Taliban government by several countries in 2025,

– having regard to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 10 December 1948 and to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights of 16 December 1966,

– having regard to China’s Belt and Road Initiative and Afghanistan’s expressed interest in participation,

– having regard to the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women of 18 December 1979 and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child of 20 November 1989, both ratified by Afghanistan,

– having regard to the findingsUN ofConvention relating to the 2024Status revisionof Refugees of the28 UNJuly World1951, Populationand Prospectsto withthe regardprotocol tothereto Afghanistan’sof demographic16 development,December 1966,

– having regard to the judgment of the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) of 4 October 2024, ruling that systemic discrimination such as that faced by Afghan women under the Taliban’s rule amounts to persecution under EU asylum law,

– having regard to the Cooperation Agreement on Partnership and Development between the European Union and its Member States, of the one part, and the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, of the other part, signed on 18 February 2017,

– having regard to the EU thematic guidelines on human rights defenders, on the promotion and protection of the rights of the child, and on violence against women and girls and combating all forms of discrimination against them,

– having regard to Rule 136(2) of its Rules of Procedure,

A. whereas Afghanistan is facing a severe crisis characterised by economic collapse, poverty and food insecurity; whereas this crisis is exacerbated by natural disasters such as devastating earthquakes and floods;

A. whereas on 31 August 2025, a 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck eastern Afghanistan, killing over 2 000 people, injuring thousands more, wiping out several villages and destroying key transport routes, which severely hampered rescue operations; whereas four days later, on 4 September 2025, a 6.2 magnitude earthquake, and five aftershocks, struck the region, aggravating the humanitarian crisis;

B. whereas on 31 August 2025, an earthquake with a magnitude of 6.0 struck the province of Kunar in eastern Afghanistan, killing around 3 000 people, injuring around 4 000 and destroying 8 000 homes; whereas at least 17 aftershocks had been felt by 1 September 2025; whereas the most severe aftershock struck the region on 4 September 2025; whereas Afghanistan lies in a seismically active region, where earthquakes are fairly common as a result of tectonic activity;

B. whereas Taliban-imposed extreme restrictions on the rights of Afghan women and girls have hampered the emergency response to the earthquakes and exacerbated the suffering of women and girls; whereas rules impeding male rescuers from physically assisting women have led to delays or the denial of medical care and life-saving first aid to female victims; whereas the Taliban’s restrictions on women’s education and employment have resulted in a serious shortage of female healthcare workers; whereas the Taliban government banned women from working in non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and with the UN;

C. whereas Afghanistan’s population has more than doubled since the beginning of the century, increasing from approximately 19.5 million in 2000 to over 40 million in 2021; whereas Afghanistan’s population is projected to reach around 76.9 million by mid-2050; whereas Afghanistan’s dramatic population growth and extremely high birth rate can primarily be attributed to cultural factors and religious beliefs within Afghan society;

C. whereas, prior to the earthquake, the eastern provinces of Kunar and Nangarhar, the hardest hit quake areas, were already facing drought and crisis levels of acute malnutrition, largely due to severe reductions in humanitarian funding and services; whereas several donor nations have curtailed or withdrawn assistance; whereas US foreign aid funding cuts under President Donald Trump have severely hit Afghanistan’s healthcare system and food assistance programmes;

D. whereas the EU provided Afghanistan with more than EUR 4 billion between the end of 2001 and 2020; whereas between 2003 and 2020, more than 20 % of the EU’s total spending on Afghanistan was specifically aimed at supporting governance and civil society and improving women’s rights;

D. whereas the quake-hit region is facing a massive influx of Afghan families returning to shattered homes and farmland, following their forced expulsion from Iran and Pakistan, where authorities have intensified expulsions of Afghan refugees and asylum seekers;

E. whereas since 2021, the EU has provided over EUR 860 million in humanitarian funding for Afghanistan; whereas the EU’s humanitarian aid provision for Afghanistan in 2025 is set to total EUR 161 million;

E. whereas Taliban policies have severely restricted the ability of humanitarian and aid agencies to operate within the country, contravening international human rights law and obligations;

F. whereas the EUhumanitarian issituation donatingin EURAfghanistan 1is milliondire, inwith humanitariannearly funds24 andmillion 130people tonnesdependent ofon in-kindhumanitarian assistanceassistance, towith Afghanistanalmost in15 responsemillion tosuffering thefrom recentacute earthquakes;food insecurity;

G. whereas for years, Afghans have been one of the main nationalities reported as having illegally crossed the EU’s external borders; whereas Afghanistan has also been one of the main countries of origin for asylum applications in the EU; whereas there was a record increase in the inflow of Afghans in 2015 when former German Chancellor Angela Merkel opened Germany’s borders, with the number of Afghan immigrants exceeding 200 000; whereas at the end of June 2021, 82 000 of the 703 000 asylum applications still pending in EU countries had been filed by Afghans, mostly in Germany and France;

G. whereas on 29 September 2025, the Taliban government shut down internet and telecom services for 48 hours, limiting access to emergency services and isolating women and girls, for whom the internet has become the only way to connect and defy the Taliban’s ban on female education beyond sixth grade;

H. whereas the complete lack of progress on returns of Afghans prompted the EU to sign the Joint Declaration on Migration Cooperation (JDMC) with Afghanistan in April 2021 to facilitate and accelerate returns; whereas the JDMC was suspended after the Taliban took over in August 2021;

1. Expresses its deepest solidarity and sympathies with all individuals affected by the earthquakes, with their families, and with those involved in relief efforts in the aftermath of the disaster;

I. whereas in August 2025, Reform UK announced new plans to return around 600 000 illegal migrants within five years of a Reform government coming to power, including by way of returns agreements with countries such as Iran, Eritrea and Afghanistan; whereas the Taliban regime has indicated its readiness and willingness to take back deported illegal migrants; whereas the US administration’s decision to end the legal status of thousands of Afghans enables their return to Afghanistan; whereas it is reported that the Trump administration and the Taliban are ‘working together’ to fight Islamist terrorism; whereas several European countries, including Germany, Switzerland and Austria, have sent delegations to Afghanistan or have hosted Taliban officials on their territory in order to facilitate returns of Afghans;

2. Deplores and condemns the cruel restrictions on the rights of Afghan women and girls, resulting in the establishment of a gender apartheid, which unjustifiably hindered earthquake relief efforts and led to a lack of humanitarian assistance to women and girls; denounces as a crime against humanity the deliberate abandonment to which the Afghan regime has condemned the female victims of this tragedy;

J. whereas on 4 October 2024, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) confirmed that gender and nationality were sufficient grounds to grant Afghan women asylum;

3. Urges the de facto Afghan authorities to immediately halt their discrimination against women and girls; calls for the immediate restoration of women’s and girls’ full, equal, meaningful participation in Afghan public life, particularly their access to education and work; commends the courage of Afghanistan’s women and human rights defenders, and stands in solidarity with them;

K. whereas the Taliban’s diplomacy in Central Asia is increasingly focused on economic cooperation, prioritising infrastructure development and promoting trade expansion; whereas Afghanistan is working with Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan in the field of border security;

4. Reiterates that gender equality and women’s rights are a precondition for democratic societies; stresses that the systemic oppression, discrimination, and segregation of women and girls constitutes a violation of fundamental rights and results in a system of gender apartheid; stresses the need to recognise gender apartheid as a crime under international law, to better protect and support women and girls in Afghanistan;

L. whereas Afghanistan possesses mineral resources valued at up to USD 3 trillion, including substantial deposits of lithium, copper and rare earth elements, all of which are essential for modern industry;

5. Urges the de facto Afghan authorities to immediately lift all restrictions on the work of the UN and NGOs operating in Afghanistan;

M. whereas Afghanistan serves as a crucial transit corridor connecting Central Asia with South Asia and the Arabian Sea and has major infrastructure projects under way, including the Trans-Afghan Railway, which is valued at USD 4.8 billion; whereas Afghanistan’s integration into China’s Belt and Road Initiative could fundamentally alter the region’s economic dynamics;

6. Calls for the EU, the Member States, the United States and other donor states to urgently step up support, and increase humanitarian aid and funding to support the Afghan people and address the needs of those impacted by the earthquakes;

N. whereas China has invested significantly in Afghanistan’s extractive sector, including through a USD 540 million oil extraction contract in the Amu Darya basin;

7. Calls for the EU, its Member States and the international community to increase diplomatic pressure on the Taliban authorities to demand the restoration of a formal legal system, protection of human rights, particularly the rights of women and girls, and the rule of law;

O. whereas various Central Asian countries continue to cooperate with Afghanistan in the field of energy despite its international isolation, demonstrating the country’s regional integration;

8. Expresses grave concern regarding the situation of Afghan refugees and asylum seekers, whose forced return puts them at risk; urges authorities in host countries to halt all expulsions to Afghanistan, especially for those at risk of persecution, and to urgently expedite the processing of applications from Afghans in need of safety and protection;

P. whereas according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies, by July 2025, Afghanistan’s diplomatic presence abroad had increased significantly to 23 missions that are run by and/or cooperate with the Taliban regime; whereas this includes the appointment of Taliban ambassadors to the UAE (August 2024), Pakistan (May 2025), Türkiye (June 2025) and Russia (July 2025) and of Taliban chargés d’affaires in Egypt, Indonesia and Oman;

9. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission and the Council, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, the United Nations and the de facto authorities of Afghanistan.

Q. whereas the absence of formal diplomatic relations severely hampers effective cooperation on migration management and return procedures;

1. Expresses its condolences to the families of the victims of the recent earthquakes and its sympathy with their plight;

2. Is deeply concerned by the ongoing crisis in Afghanistan and the potential spillover effects;

3. Expresses its grave concern that decades of extensive international aid have not generated any economic growth in Afghanistan; considers that the disbursement of EU funds to Afghanistan should be conditional upon the country’s cooperation in the return of Afghan nationals residing illegally in the EU;

4. Notes that the large-scale provision of EU development aid to Afghanistan has not had the desired results; demands that all aid to Afghanistan be suspended if the Afghan Government does not cooperate in the return to Afghanistan of Afghan citizens who are residing illegally in the EU;

5. Deplores the situation of women and girls in Afghanistan; decries the fact that the Taliban have denied girls post-primary education, banned women from numerous public places and restricted women’s employment to healthcare and primary education; is of the opinion that these highly restrictive norms have a very negative economic and social impact;

6. Calls for the EU to change its strategy and pursue technical cooperation and diplomacy with the aim of achieving concrete, visible results with regard to girls’ and women’s rights and their access to education;

7. Expresses deep concern about the consequences of mass migration by Afghans for the freedom and security of women and girls across Europe; notes that official statistics show that Afghans are disproportionately involved in the perpetration of sexual crimes throughout Europe;

8. Emphasises that direct technical cooperation between the EU and its Member States and Afghanistan is a prerequisite for the effective return of Afghans from EU Member States;

9. Encourages the Member States to make technical arrangements with Afghanistan in order to facilitate returns of Afghans;

10. Calls on Afghanistan to reintegrate returned Afghans;

11. Is concerned by the CJEU’s judgment of 4 October 2024, according to which gender and nationality are sufficient grounds for asylum; considers that this judgment will distort the overall purpose of asylum mechanisms, create an additional ‘pull effect’ and lead to unequal access to protection, as a certain group of people can be granted automatic preference in obtaining asylum; strongly condemns the fact that the EU’s highest court of law is changing asylum law in order to promote its own views on social justice;

12. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, the Council, the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the European External Action Service, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, and the Taliban regime.