The surprise appearance of a ‘health director’ from the radical Islamist Taliban in a Cologne mosque continues to cause a stir in Germany. It has now become known that the man named Abdul Bari Omar entered Germany without a visa. By the way, in his speech he assured that Afghanistan is now a safe country.
The Taliban official’s speech caused an uproar in Germany. Little was known about the content until now, but it is now clear that Abdul Bari Omar was probably sent on a kind of ‘publicity tour’ by his regime.
Taliban official asked for money
In his speech he emphasized how safe Afghanistan is now after “the jihad that lasted more than twenty years”. And he urged attendees to “invest in the country or even come back.” The regime in Kabul is internationally isolated and the Taliban are plagued by financial problems because they are cut off from international currency markets.
The humanitarian situation in Afghanistan is precarious
The already suffering population feels this in a famine, which mainly affects the countryside. The EU recently provided €60 million in humanitarian aid to the Afghan people.
The situation of women and girls in Afghanistan is particularly precarious; women’s rights activist Parisa Asada was recently arrested. They brutally suppressed demonstrations against the Taliban.
Before his appearance in Cologne, the Taliban official attended a World Health Organization (WHO) conference in The Hague, which took place from November 6 to 8. Minister of Health Ernst Kuipers announced on Saturday via platform
Minister of Health regrets photo
Kuipers also had his photo taken with the Taliban representative during the conference. The photo had already been circulated
The German Minister of the Interior wants clarification
After his visit to the Netherlands, Omar apparently entered Germany unhindered – a circumstance that is extremely embarrassing, and not only for the Foreign Ministry in Berlin. Interior Minister Faeser now emphasized that the responsible authorities would intensively investigate the matter. The umbrella organization DITIB, to which the Cologne mosque belongs, expects “a full and very quick explanation of how the apparition in Cologne came about.”
The German Foreign Ministry (AA) strongly condemned Omar’s actions on Friday. The trip was not announced to the AA and the man was not given a visa before entering Germany. When asked on Saturday, North Rhine-Westphalia’s interior ministry said the man was the head of food and medicine authorities in Afghanistan.
“An unspeakable event”
The State Chancellery of North Rhine-Westphalia also condemned the actions of the Taliban official. “The fact that members of a radical organization like the Taliban spread their ideologies unfiltered on German soil is an unspeakable event,” a spokesperson told the “Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger”. However, the Düsseldorf Interior Ministry on Saturday referred to an assessment by the Federal Prosecutor General: according to this, the Taliban, with their seizure of power in Afghanistan and the formation of a government in September 2021, are no longer a criminal or terrorist organization. “from now.”
Abdul Bari Omar performed at a mosque in Cologne-Chorweiler on Thursday. The umbrella organization DITIB initially named the organizing association “Afghan Cultural Association Cologne Meschenich”. The club then stated that it was not involved in the event and that the club name had been used unlawfully. DITIB subsequently corrected its information on Saturday evening. In fact, the hall was made available to people known to DITIB as the board of directors of the “Kunar Youth Cultural Association” and acting on its behalf.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
