KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – The United Nations has called on the Taliban to reverse the ban on Afghan women working in UN offices across Afghanistan, warning that the restriction threatens critical humanitarian operations.
In a statement on Thursday, the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) said that Taliban security forces prevented national female staff and contractors from entering UN compounds in Kabul, Herat, and Balkh provinces.
UNAMA said the ban was first enforced on September 7, when Taliban guards in Kabul turned back women trying to report for duty. The restriction has since been extended nationwide through written and verbal orders issued by Taliban authorities.
According to UNAMA, Taliban forces are stationed outside UN premises in Kabul, Herat, and Mazar-i-Sharif to enforce the ban. In some cases, they have also prevented female staff from traveling to field sites, including areas recently struck by an earthquake and border regions where Afghan refugees are returning from Iran and Pakistan.
“The United Nations in Afghanistan is engaging the de facto authorities and calls for the immediate lifting of the restrictions to continue critical support to the Afghan people,” UNAMA said, stressing that such measures violate international rules protecting UN personnel.
Richard Bennett, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan, echoed UNAMA’s call. In a post on X, he said: “Blocking women from accessing workplaces or supporting communities in need is further proof that the Taliban must not be normalized until they change course.”
The Taliban first imposed the ban in April 2023, following earlier restrictions on women working in government offices and most NGOs. The UN later reached an arrangement allowing female staff to continue delivering aid, particularly to women. At the time, the organization employed nearly 4,000 people in Afghanistan, including about 400 Afghan women.
The new restrictions come as Afghanistan struggles to respond to a devastating earthquake in the east. Aid groups say female staff are essential in conservative areas, where women can only be reached by other women. According to UN agencies, thousands of women and children affected by the earthquake—including 11,600 pregnant women—remain in temporary shelters and are in urgent need of assistance.
The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has also scaled back operations due to the restrictions. Earlier this week, the agency suspended cash assistance for thousands of Afghan returnees, saying it could no longer provide equal and safe support without female staff.
The ban is part of the Taliban’s wider crackdown on women and girls in Afghanistan, including prohibitions on education beyond sixth grade, working, traveling long distances without a male guardian, visiting parks, and accessing beauty salons. UN experts, rights groups, and activists say these measures constitute “gender apartheid.”
