UN says three Afghan female staff temporarily detained by Taliban

The United Nations’ Mission to Afghanistan (UNAMA) on Monday said three of its female Afghan employees had been temporarily detained by Taliban security agents and called on the group to stop intimidation of its local female staff.

Taliban spokesmen said they strongly rejected the allegations.

UNAMA said in a statement that the three women employed by the UN had been singled out by armed security agents and detained for questioning temporarily on Monday, but did not provide further details about the incident.

“The UN calls for an immediate end to all such acts of intimidation and harassment targeting its Afghan female staff, calling on the de facto authorities to reiterate and enforce explicit guarantees for the safety and security of all UN personnel operating in Afghanistan,” the U.N. mission (UNAMA) said in a statement.

“There has been an emerging pattern of harassment of Afghan UN female staff by the de facto authorities,” UNAMA said, referring to the Taliban administration.

Taliban deputy spokesman Bilal Karimi told Reuters the Taliban rejected allegations of harassment, saying the incident involved Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice officials in the southern city of Kandahar.

Figures from international organisations show women’s participation in the workforce has declined, though some women are still working outside the home.