Taliban revoke ban on Red Cross and provide security guarantees
The ICRC has been providing medical support in Afghanistan for more than 30 years. In this image from 2001, local Afghan Red Cross workers carry dead Taliban fighters after fighting ended near Mazar-i-Sharif, in northern Afghanistan.
Keystone
The Taliban on Sunday revoked their ban on the Geneva-based International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Afghanistan and gave a guarantee of security for its staff doing humanitarian work in areas under their control.
This content was published on
2 minutes
Reuters/ts
Taliban leaders imposed a ban on the ICRC and the World Health Organization (WHO) in April, saying the organisations were carrying out “suspicious” activities during vaccination campaigns and not sticking to their declared missions.
“The Islamic Emirate restores the former security guarantees to ICRC in Afghanistan and instructs all mujahideen to pave the way for ICRC activities and be mindful of security to this committee’s workers and equipment,” Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid in a statement.
The Taliban refer to themselves as the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. The spokesman did not refer to the WHO in his statement.
Officials at ICRC and WHO in Kabul were not immediately available for comment to Reuters.
Strict neutrality
The WHO has been carrying out a vaccination campaign in Afghanistan, one of the last countries in the world where polio is endemic. The ICRC has been providing medical support for more than 30 years.
Aid groups operating in Afghanistan stress that they do not take sides. The ICRC in particular is known for its strict neutrality in conflicts.
It operates in Taliban-controlled areas with a guarantee of safety and helps to repatriate bodies from both sides after fighting between the militants and the Afghan army.
The Taliban control or contest more than half of Afghanistan’s 410 Afghan districts.
More
More
ICRC suspends Afghan operations after staff killed
This content was published on
One of Switzerland’s most iconic humanitarian aid organisations suffered its worst attack in 20 years.
Swiss institute hosted informal talks between Russians, Ukrainians and Americans
This content was published on
The Geneva Center for Security Policy (GCSP) has hosted 10 meetings between Russian and Ukrainian interlocutors since the start of the war.
Automated driving on Swiss motorways is theoretically possible from March
This content was published on
It will be theoretically possible to hand over the steering wheel to technology but no such system has been submitted for official approval yet.
Heated atmosphere at Swiss rally against AfD politician Alice Weidel
This content was published on
Around 250 people demonstrated "against the right" and the German AfD politician Alice Weidel on Saturday afternoon in Einsiedeln.
This content was published on
The Ethos Foundation recommends that shareholders vote against all compensation-related items at the Annual General Meeting on March 7.
Top Swiss firms close to reaching gender quota in boards
This content was published on
The proportion of women on the boards of directors of the fifty largest listed companies in Switzerland currently stands at 28%.
This content was published on
“After 17 years of war that produced only losers, the time has come for dialogue. The time has come for a political solution. Switzerland is ready to host any round of talks if requested,” he said. Tens of thousands of civilians have been killed and wounded in Afghanistan since the war started in 2001. The…
This content was published on
The rise of ‘non-state’ armed groups is a topic which has occupied the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) for some time now.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.