The EU on Saturday condemned the Taliban's ban on women working for NGOs in Afghanistan and said it was assessing the impact on its aid in the country. Meanwhile, officials from the United Nations and dozens of NGOs met in Kabul to discuss the situation.
"The European Union strongly condemns the Taliban's recent decision to ban women from working in national and international NGOs," a spokeswoman for EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell told AFP in a statement.
"We are assessing the situation and the impact it will have on our aid on the ground."
The Taliban, the fundamentalist Islamic rulers of Afghanistan, have ordered non-governmental organisations in the country to stop women employees from working.
The Taliban government said in a notification to all NGOs that it was because of the "non-observance of the Islamic hijab" (headscarf) by "females" working for the NGOs.
The Ministry of Economy on Saturday threatened to suspend the operating licences of NGOs if they failed to implement the order.
The latest restriction comes less than a week after the Taliban leadership banned women from attending universities, after already having banned teenage girls from high school. Women have also been pushed out of government jobs.
EU major support for aid organisations
It was unclear whether the directive impacted foreign women staff at NGOs.
Three foreign aid groups, including Save the Children, announced on Sunday they were suspending their operations.
"We cannot effectively reach children, women and men in desperate need in Afghanistan without our female staff," Save the Children, the Norwegian Refugee Council and CARE said in a joint statement.
"Whilst we gain clarity on this announcement, we are suspending our programmes, demanding that men and women can equally continue our lifesaving assistance in Afghanistan," they said.
Some women employees AFP spoke to dismissed the Taliban's accusations.
"Our offices are gender segregated, and every woman is properly dressed," said Arezo, who works for a foreign NGO.
The European Union is a major funder of aid organisations that work in Afghanistan. However it does not recognise the Taliban as the country's official government.
Borrell's spokeswoman Nabila Massrali said: "Our foremost concern will continue to be the welfare, rights, and freedoms of the people of Afghanistan."
She said the ban on women working for NGOs "is another harsh restriction on the ability of women in Afghanistan to exercise their human rights and fundamental freedoms and a clear breach of humanitarian principles".
Peace efforts in jeopardy
Meanwhile, top officials from the United Nations and dozens of NGOs operating in Afghanistan are meeting in Kabul Sunday to discuss the way ahead.
"A meeting of Humanitarian Country Team (HCT) is scheduled later today to consult and discuss how to tackle this issue," Tapiwa Gomo, public information officer for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, told AFP.
The HCT comprises top UN officials and representatives of dozens of Afghan and international NGOs who coordinate distribution of aid across the country.
The meeting will discuss whether to suspend all aid work following the latest Taliban directive, some NGO officials said.
The United Nations, which said it would seek an explanation from the Taliban about the order, condemned the ministry's directive.
It said the order excluding women "systematically from all aspects of public and political life takes the country backward, jeopardising efforts for any meaningful peace or stability in the country".
Economic crisis deepens
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the ban would be "devastating" to Afghans as it would "disrupt vital and life-saving assistance to millions".
The ban comes at a time when millions across the country depend on humanitarian aid provided by international donors through a vast network of NGOs.
Afghanistan's economic crisis has only worsened since the Taliban seized power in August last year, which led to Washington freezing billions of dollars of its assets and foreign donors cutting aid.
(with wires)
