UN Confirms Threats To Afghan Female Staff In Kabul, Urges Protection

The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has confirmed that female staff members in Kabul have been threatened amid reports that individuals linked to the Taliban have stalked and issued death threats to Afghan women working for the organisation.

A week after Afghanistan International first reported the incidents, the UN said that some of its Afghan female employees had been forced to work from home due to security concerns.

At least three UN sources in Kabul told Afghanistan International that on Tuesday and Wednesday last week, armed Taliban members targeted, followed and intimidated several Afghan women working for various UN agencies in the capital.

Several women, speaking to AFP on condition of anonymity, said they had been threatened both in the streets and by phone calls from men warning them to “stay home.” One female UN employee told the news agency she had received repeated messages in recent weeks, containing insults and threats for “working with foreigners.”

According to AFP, UNAMA acknowledged that some of its Afghan female staff in Kabul had been threatened by unidentified individuals because of their work with the UN.

“Several United Nations female national staff members in the Afghan capital Kabul have been subjected to threats by unidentified individuals related to their work with the UN,” the organisation said in a statement.

UNAMA added that, given the seriousness of the threats, the UN had implemented “interim” measures to ensure the safety and protection of its personnel.

Abdul Mateen Qani, spokesperson for the Taliban’s Ministry of Interior, denied Taliban involvement and told AFP that such threats are considered “criminal acts” and that police would take action.

UNAMA also said that Taliban authorities had launched an investigation into the matter following the reports.

In 2022, the Taliban banned women from working with both domestic and international NGOs and extended the prohibition to UN offices the following year.