Taliban Arrests 34 Humanitarian Workers & Suspends 56 Aid Projects
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has confirmed a significant increase in Taliban crackdowns on humanitarian operations in Afghanistan. In January 2024, 34 aid workers, including nine women, were arrested by Taliban authorities.
According to the report, 15 of those detained remain in custody as of February. OCHA also revealed that 56 humanitarian projects have been suspended due to Taliban interference, with nearly half still on hold.
The findings indicate a one hundred sixty-one percent rise in aid worker arrests compared to the previous month. Additionally, 127 cases of interference or restrictions on humanitarian aid access were recorded, with eighty-three percent attributed to the Taliban.
OCHA outlined several ways in which the Taliban have disrupted humanitarian work, including demands for staff lists and data, restrictions on women’s participation in aid efforts, intervention in hiring processes, delays in document approvals, and procurement disruptions.
A previous OCHA report showed that in November 2024, 164 incidents of humanitarian aid disruptions were documented in Afghanistan, with ninety-nine percent linked to Taliban authorities.
