UNSC unanimously condemns Taliban ban on Afghan women working for global agencies

The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on Thursday unanimously condemned a Taliban administration ban on Afghan women working for the United Nations in Afghanistan and called on Taliban leaders to “swiftly reverse” a rigid crackdown on the fundamental rights of women and girls.

The UN resolution — drafted by the United Arab Emirates and Japan — describes the ban as “unprecedented in the history of the United Nations,” asserts “the indispensable role of women in Afghan society” and says the ban on Afghan women working for the global body “undermines human rights and humanitarian principles”.

The UAE’s UN ambassador Lana Nusseibeh said more than 90 countries co-sponsored the resolution “from Afghanistan’s immediate neighbourhood, from the Muslim world and from all corners of the earth.”

The UNSC vote came days before a planned international meeting in Doha on May 1-2 on Afghanistan. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will convene behind closed doors special envoys on Afghanistan from various countries to work on a unified approach to dealing with the Taliban.

“We will not stand for the Taliban’s repression of women and girls,” Deputy US Ambassador to the United Nations, Robert Wood, told the council. “These decisions are indefensible. They are not seen anywhere else in the world.” He went on to add that the Taliban’s rigid laws are causing irreparable damage to Afghanistan.

Earlier this month the Taliban began enforcing the ban on Afghan women working for the UN after stopping most women working for humanitarian aid groups in December. Since toppling the US-backed government in 2021, they have also tightened controls on women’s access to public life, including barring women from university and closing girls’ high schools.

The Taliban says it respects women’s rights in accordance with its strict interpretation of Islamic law. Taliban officials said decisions on female aid workers are an “internal issue.”

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