Human Rights Watch has called for the immediate release of two UN staff members and six NGO workers detained by Taliban authorities in Afghanistan in recent weeks.
HRW said on Wednesday that six male employees of the Women and Children Legal Research Foundation (WCLRF) were forcibly disappeared after being detained in Kabul last month. The organisation works on aid programmes and advocates for the rights of women and children.
In a separate case, two Afghan employees of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) were detained by Taliban intelligence officials in the western city of Herat on Sunday.
The Taliban’s chief spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, told Reuters that he was seeking information about the latest detentions but had not yet received definitive details.
The UN confirmed the detention of its two employees earlier this week. UN deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq said the organisation had not been informed of any charges against them and had not been allowed to visit them.
Fereshta Abbasi, Afghanistan researcher at Human Rights Watch, warned that the detention of UNAMA personnel could undermine the UN’s ability to provide lifesaving assistance in the country.
UNAMA, the UN’s political mission in Afghanistan, monitors human rights and collects information on conditions in the country. Its findings have repeatedly drawn criticism from the Taliban authorities.
HRW said Taliban security forces had raided the WCLRF office in Kabul on June 21, confiscated employees’ belongings and sealed the premises. Staff members were subsequently questioned about the organisation’s activities.
According to HRW, six senior male employees were detained on July 18 after Taliban authorities summoned them to the office, reportedly to collect belongings that had been confiscated during the raid.
Their families have not received information about their whereabouts, health or whether they have been formally charged, the rights group said.
The detentions come just days before the Taliban marks five years since returning to power. Afghanistan remains heavily dependent on international assistance, even as foreign aid has declined in recent years. Aid organisations have repeatedly accused Taliban authorities of restricting their operations, raising further concerns about the delivery of humanitarian assistance.
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