Headline

Three Foreign NGOs Stop Work In Afghanistan After Taliban Ban On Women Staff

Published

3 years ago

December 25, 2022

Afghan burqa-clad women travel in a vehicle along the road in Kandahar on December 25, 2022. (Photo by Naveed Tanveer / AFP)

Three foreign aid groups announced on Sunday they were suspending their operations in Afghanistan after the country’s Taliban rulers ordered all NGOs to stop women staff from working.

Their announcement prompted warnings from a top UN official in Afghanistan and from NGOs that humanitarian aid would be hard hit.

“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.”

Saturday’s order issued by the ministry of economy drew swift international condemnation.

The ban is the latest blow against women’s rights.

Less than a week ago, the hardline Islamists also barred women from attending universities, prompting global outrage and protests in some Afghan cities.

The ministry threatened to suspend the operating licences of aid organisations that failed to stop women from working.

It said it had received “serious complaints” that women working in NGOs were not observing a proper Islamic dress code, a charge also used by authorities to justify banning university education.

But the UN chief’s deputy special representative for Afghanistan, Ramiz Alakbarov, told AFP that the ban will impede aid delivery to millions of people and also have a “devastating” impact on the country’s dilapidated economy.

“It will be very difficult to continue and deliver humanitarian assistance in an independent and fair way because women’s participation is very important,” Alakbarov said.

“We are going to discuss this matter with the authorities… We will insist on reversal of the ban.”

Germany’s Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock on Sunday also called for a “clear reaction from the international community”.

– ‘Devastating economic impact’ –

At a meeting of humanitarian officials on Sunday, there was no decision over whether all NGOs would suspend operations, according to Alakbarov, who added that more discussions would be held.

He acknowledged that the ban would impact the UN’s operations as it distributes aid through a vast network of NGOs.

“There is a direct impact on our ability to deliver the programme and on our ability to deliver assistance like food and non-food items,” he said.

The ban will also have a “very devastating” impact on Afghanistan’s economy, already in a tailspin since the withdrawal of foreign forces in August last year.

“All assistance which is being provided to Afghanistan in this period is very critical, both for the nutritional security and to the job security of the people,” he said.

Afghanistan’s economic crisis has worsened since the Taliban seized power, which led to Washington freezing billions of dollars of assets and foreign donors cutting aid.

Dozens of organisations work across remote areas of Afghanistan and many employee women, with several warning the ban will stymie their activities.

“Some NGOs have up to 2,000 women employees, and in most of the cases they are the only breadwinners for their families,” Alakbarov said.

– ‘Hell for women’ –

Shabana, 24, told AFP she was the only earning member in her family.

“If I lose my job, my family of 15 members will die of hunger,” said Shabana, who has worked for a foreign NGO for decades and gave only one name.

“While the world is celebrating the arrival of the new year, Afghanistan has become a hell for women.”

The ministry said women working in NGOs were not observing “the Islamic hijab and other rules and regulations pertaining to the work of females in national and international organisations”.

But NGO staff dismissed the charge.

“Our offices are gender segregated, and every woman is properly dressed,” said Arezo, who works for another foreign NGO and also gave only one name.

It remained unclear whether the directive impacted foreign staff at NGOs.

The international community has made respecting women’s rights a sticking point in negotiations with the Taliban government for its recognition and the restoration of aid.

On Tuesday, the minister of higher education banned women from universities, also accusing them of being improperly dressed.

That ban triggered widespread international outrage and protests, which were forcefully dispersed by the authorities.

The Taliban had already barred teenage girls from secondary school.

Women have also been pushed out of many government jobs, prevented from travelling without a male relative and ordered to cover up outside of the home, ideally with a burqa.

They are also not allowed to enter parks or gardens.

Headline

‘They Checked My Instagram’ – Nigerian Lady Breaks Down After Landing In U.S, Denied Entry

Published

10 hours ago

June 29, 2025

Editor

A Nigerian businesswoman has taken to social media to share her frustration and heartbreak after being denied entry into the United States, despite holding a valid visa.

In a video recorded on her return flight to Nigeria, the visibly distraught woman revealed that she was travelling to Texas for a trade fair.

She said she possessed a B1/B2 visa, which allows travel for both tourism and business meetings.

However, upon arrival in the U.S., things took a turn.

“I was denied entrance into the US and that is because my visa [is] a B1–B2 visa which is [for] tourism/business meetings,” she explained tearfully.

“When I landed, I was detained for 24 hours and I was questioned. I told them I was going to exhibit but I did not know any better because the US has your data and your Instagram page.”

According to her, immigration officials scrutinised her social media activity and private messages, using them to challenge her stated purpose of visit.

“Apparently, my Instagram says different. They even checked all my messages with my customers. The customers I have been telling that we are coming, they can pick up and all of that,” she said through tears.

Headline

Uganda: After 39 Years In Power, 80-year-old Yoweri Museveni To Seek Re-election

Published

16 hours ago

June 29, 2025

Editor

Ugandan President, Yoweri Museveni, has announced his intention to run in the country’s next presidential election, extending a rule that began nearly four decades ago.

In a post on the X platform late Saturday, Museveni said he had “expressed my interest in running for… the position of presidential flag bearer,” for his ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) party.

The 80-year-old leader has governed Uganda since 1986 after seizing power following a five-year guerrilla war. Under his leadership, the ruling NRM has twice amended the constitution, allowing him to remain in office beyond term and age limits.

According to Reuters, right groups have long accused Museveni of deploying security forces and leveraging patronage to hold onto power, an allegation he denies.

Explaining his decision to seek reelection, Museveni said he aims to grow Uganda’s economy to a ”$500 billion economy in the next five years.” According to the finance ministry, the country’s GDP currently stands at about $66 billion.

Uganda is set to hold presidential and parliamentary elections in January next year. Museveni’s main challenger is expected to be opposition figure and pop star-turned-politician Bobi Wine, who came second in the 2021 election and has declared his intention to contest again in 2026.

Wine, whose real name is Robert Kyagulanyi, rejected the 2021 results, alleging his victory had been stolen through “ballot stuffing, intimidation by security forces and other irregularities.”

Headline

‘Netanyahu Must Go’, Israel’s Ex-PM Calls Leadership ‘Catastrophic’

Published

19 hours ago

June 29, 2025

Editor

Naftali Bennett, Israel’s former Prime Minister, stated in a televised interview that current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu must leave office.

Bennett refrained from saying whether he plans to challenge the longest-serving leader in the country in an upcoming election.

In an interview with Israel’s Channel 12 that aired on Saturday, Bennett commented, “Netanyahu has been in power for 20 years… that’s too much; it’s not healthy.”

He called attention to Netanyahu’s “heavy responsibility for the divisions in Israeli society,” highlighting the growing rifts that have emerged under Netanyahu’s leadership, especially regarding his handling of the Gaza war since October 2023.

Bennett, a right-wing leader who joined forces with Netanyahu’s critics to form a coalition that ousted him from office after 12 consecutive years, insisted that “Netanyahu must go.”

However, the fragile coalition government Bennett led, along with current opposition leader Yair Lapid, collapsed after about a year. This led to snap elections, resulting in Netanyahu regaining the premiership with support from far-right and ultra-Orthodox Jewish parties.

Although Bennett has taken time away from politics, there are rumors of a potential comeback, with public opinion polls indicating he may have enough support to defeat Netanyahu again. Currently, no elections are scheduled before late 2026, but early elections are common in Israel.

In his Saturday interview, Bennett claimed credit for laying the groundwork for Israel’s bombardment campaign earlier this month against Iranian nuclear and military sites.

The decision to launch attacks against the Islamic Republic “was very good” and “needed,” said Bennett, claiming that the offensive would not have been possible without the work of his short-lived government.

In Gaza, where Israel has waged war since Hamas’s October 2023 attack, Bennett said the military has displayed “exceptional” performance, but “the political management of the country” was “a catastrophe, a disaster”.

Criticising the Netanyahu government’s “inability to decide,” the former prime minister called for an immediate “comprehensive” agreement that would see all remaining hostages freed from Gaza.

“Leave the task of eliminating Hamas to a future government,” said Bennett, who also evaded several questions about whether he intends to run for office.

AFP