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IEA bans female NGO staff, jeopardizing aid efforts

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Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) on Saturday ordered all local and foreign NGOs to stop female employees from working, in a move the United Nations said would hit humanitarian operations just as winter grips a country already in economic crisis.

A letter from the economy ministry, confirmed by spokesperson Abdulrahman Habib, said female employees of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) were not allowed to work until further notice because some had not adhered to the administration’s interpretation of Islamic dresscode for women, Reuters reported.

It comes days after the Islamic Emirate ordered universities to close to women, prompting global condemnation and sparking some protests and heavy criticism inside Afghanistan.

Both decisions are the latest restrictions on women that are likely to undermine the IEA’s efforts to gain international recognition and clear sanctions that are severely hampering the economy, read the report.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Twitter he was “deeply concerned” the move “will disrupt vital and life-saving assistance to millions,” adding: “Women are central to humanitarian operations around the world. This decision could be devastating for the Afghan people.”

Ramiz Alakbarov, the UN deputy special representative for Afghanistan and humanitarian coordinator, told Reuters that although the UN had not received the order, contracted NGOs carried out most of its activities and would be heavily impacted.

“Many of our programmes will be affected,” he said, because they need female staff to assess humanitarian need and identify beneficiaries, otherwise they will not be able to implement aid programs.

International aid agency AfghanAid said it was immediately suspending operations while it consulted with other organisations, and that other NGOs were taking similar actions, Reuters reported.

The potential endangerment of aid programmes that millions of Afghans access comes when more than half the population relies on humanitarian aid, according to aid agencies, and during the mountainous nation’s coldest season.

“There’s never a right time for anything like this … but this particular time is very unfortunate because during winter time people are most in need and Afghan winters are very harsh,” said Alakbarov.

He said his office would consult with NGOs and UN agencies on Sunday and seek to meet with IEA authorities for an explanation.

Aid workers say female workers are essential in a country where rules and cultural customs largely prevent male workers from delivering aid to female beneficiaries.

“An important principle of delivery of humanitarian aid is the ability of women to participate independently and in an unimpeded way in its distribution so if we can’t do it in a principled way then no donors will be funding any programs like that,” Alakbarov said.

When asked whether the rules directly included UN agencies, Habib said the letter applied to organisations under Afghanistan’s coordinating body for humanitarian organisations, known as ACBAR. That body does not include the UN, but includes over 180 local and international NGOs.

Their licences would be suspended if they did not comply, the letter said.

Afghanistan’s struggling economy has tipped into crisis since the IEA took over in 2021, with the country facing sanctions, cuts in development aid and a freeze in central bank assets.

A record 28 million Afghans are estimated to need humanitarian aid next year, according to AfghanAid.

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Terrorist attacks in Pakistan originate from Afghanistan: Khawaja Asif

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Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Asif has claimed that terrorism is being exported from Afghanistan into Pakistan. In a meeting held in response to recent Indian accusations regarding Islamabad’s role in a deadly attack in Kashmir, he stated that many terrorist attacks on Pakistani soil originate from Afghanistan and are accompanied by “clear Indian footprints.”

“Terrorism is being exported to Pakistan, and everything that originates from Afghanistan or happens in Balochistan clearly bears India’s fingerprints,” said Asif.

He emphasized that Pakistan is prepared to defend itself against any external threat, including terrorism.

He also claimed that Pakistan has been on the front lines of the fight against terrorism for years.

However, following this meeting, Asif admitted in an interview with a British media outlet that successive Pakistani governments have supported terrorist groups over the past three decades.

Following a deadly attack on tourists in the Pahalgam region of Indian-administered Kashmir, 26 tourists were killed and 17 others injured.

Meanwhile, experts believe that Afghanistan’s interests should be kept away from regional conflicts, and that the Islamic Emirate should not allow Afghanistan to become a battleground for a proxy war between India and Pakistan.

So far, the Islamic Emirate has not commented on Khawaja Asif’s remarks, but it had previously linked insecurity in Pakistan to internal issues within that country.

IEA has repeatedly emphasized that it will not allow Afghanistan’s soil to be used against any other country.

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Registered Afghan refugees must return by June 30 or face deportation: Pakistani official

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Pakistan’s State Minister for Interior Affairs Talal Chaudhry has confirmed that Pakistan has set a June 30 deadline for registered Afghan nationals, including Proof of Registration (PoR) holders, to voluntarily return to Afghanistan.

“After this, he said that formal deportation procedures will begin. Afghan refugees were and remain our guests. They are being sent back with full dignity and respect,” he told Geo News.

Pakistan is currently deporting illegal immigrants and Afghan Citizen Card holders, with thousands returning to their country daily.

Meanwhile, UNHCR’s spokesperson Qaisar Khan Afridi stressed that deportations must be voluntary, not forced.

Afridi also highlighted that the UNHCR has received complaints of arrests in parts of Punjab, even involving some documented Afghan refugees.

However, Chaudhry categorically denied such incidents, stating that no such case has been officially reported and that previous allegations turned out to be fake news upon verification.

He clarified that Afghan refugees who fail to leave within the stated deadlines are not immediately deported, but are first notified, and then taken to refugee holding centres where they are provided food, shelter, security, medical aid and travel facility.

“This is a structured, humane process. There is no chaos. Our hospitality has always been there for Afghan citizens,” Chaudhry emphasised.

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Afghanistan’s trade with India through Pakistan’s Wagah comes to halt as border closed

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With Pakistan suspending all trade with India, including to and from any third country through its territory, Afghanistan’s trade with India via the Attari-Wagah border has also come to a halt.

The latest tension between Pakistan and India was triggered by the killing of 26 men at a popular tourist destination in Indian Kashmir on Tuesday, in the worst attack on civilians in India since the 2008 Mumbai shootings.

Hindustan Times said on Friday that suspension of trade will affect the local economy, especially small traders and industries, whose livelihood largely depends on this trade.

Located around 28 kms from Amritsar city, this is the only permissible land route allowed for trade between India and Pakistan and crucial for imports from Afghanistan, according to the newspaper.

In August 2019, when India revoked Kashmir’s special status, Pakistan ceased all trade relations with India. The neighbouring country also barred India from exporting goods to Afghanistan, though the import of Afghan goods, such as dry fruits, remained normal, even after the Islamic Emirate took control over the country.

 

 

 

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