Blinken, Guterres Discuss Taliban Ban on Woman Working for UN
02:05 GMT 06.04.2023 (Updated: 19:10 GMT 08.04.2023)
© AP Photo / Ebrahim Noroozi
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WASHINGTON, April 6 (Sputnik) - US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres discussed concerns over the Taliban's* decision to ban women from working for the United Nations, State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel said in a readout of the call.
Taliban authorities earlier in the day confirmed to UN officials that Afghan women were barred from working for the United Nations in Afghanistan effective immediately in an order that would be actively enforced.
"The Secretary noted the United States deep concern regarding the Taliban’s latest restrictions on women’s work with the UN. He also expressed appreciation for the dedicated UN professionals working to assist the Afghan people," Patel said on Wednesday.
Guterres in a tweet on Wednesday condemned the ban and called on the Taliban to reverse the restriction.
Banning Afghan women from working with the UN in Afghanistan is an intolerable violation of the most basic human rights.
— António Guterres (@antonioguterres) April 5, 2023
I call on the Taliban to immediately revoke this decision & reverse all measures restricting women’s & girls’ rights to work, education & freedom of movement.
The UN Security Council is scheduled to hold closed door consultations on the matter on Thursday.
Taliban authorities in December banned most female NGO personnel from working, although the restrictions did not apply to UN employees.
The UN is one of the few bodies on the ground distributing assistance. The UN has said its massive humanitarian emergency plan for Afghanistan for 2023 has achieved less than 5% of financing needs, which totals roughly $4.6 billion.
*The Taliban is an organization under UN sanctions for terrorism.
