Afghan groups challenge effort to seize billions from Central Bank of Afghanistan 

Afghan civil society groups are opposing the effort by a group of 9/11 families and other U.S. victims to seize billions of dollars from the Central Bank of Afghanistan, Da Afghanistan Bank, to satisfy judgments against the Taliban. In an amicus brief filed last Thursday on their behalf, they argue that the $3.5 billion in blocked assets belongs to the State of Afghanistan, and ultimately the people of Afghanistan, and should be held to stabilize the economy and alleviate the humanitarian catastrophe there.

At issue are $7.1 billion that the previous government of Afghanistan placed in the New York Federal Reserve. After the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan in August 2021, the Biden Administration froze the funds. In February, President Biden signed an executive order effectively allocating half for humanitarian relief in Afghanistan and leaving half subject to litigation brought by some of the 9/11 families.

“The $3.5 billion held in Da Afghanistan Bank are sovereign funds of Afghanistan, which ultimately belong to the people of Afghanistan, and as such are protected from seizure under fundamental principles of sovereign immunity,” said Senior Staff Attorney Katherine Gallagher. “The 9/11 families should be able to enforce their judgments—against the Taliban, with the Taliban’s funds. It would be both unlawful and profoundly unjust to turnover assets belonging to the Afghan people to satisfy judgments against a terrorist-designated group.”

While Afghan civil society groups support the plaintiffs’ effort to secure just compensation, to do so in this way would harm Afghans and not the Taliban, which would be using the people’s money to pay their debts.

Continue reading about this latest development at the press release on our website. To learn more about this case, visit the Havlish v. Taliban case page.

“The Activist Files” Podcast: Land, Health, and History: A fight for Environmental Justice and Community Legacy 

What happens to a predominantly Black community when its government officials prioritize profit over health and legacy? On the 49th episode of “The Activist Files,” legal worker Sadé Evans speaks with Dr. Joy Banner and Jo Banner of “The Descendants Project,” a non-profit organization that advocates for descendants of people who were enslaved in Louisiana’s River Parishes.

In anticipation of Earth Day, this discussion centers the founders of the Descendants Project as they speak out against corporate greed and environmental racism in Wallace, Louisiana, largely known as Cancer Alley.

To listen to the episode, visit the Activist Files page on our website.