RED CROSS SAYS WILL KEEP STAFF IN AFGHANISTAN

Mon 16 August 2021:

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) does not plan any changes in its ground operations in Afghanistan and will continue to provide humanitarian assistance to all sides of the conflict in the country, the organization’s spokeswoman told Sputnik on Monday.

“The ICRC has been in Afghanistan for more than 30 years, during which time we’ve provided assistance on all sides of the conflict. We plan to continue our assistance operations, and in line with that there are not any plans to reduce our staffing numbers,” she said.

The spokeswoman noted that the ICRC had to step up its efforts in the recent weeks due to increased levels of violence, and even though the situation has improved now, it is still volatile and maintaining logistics is “challenging.”

She further said the organization has been working in the areas controlled by the Taliban (terrorist organization, banned in Russia) for a long time and has established “positive working relationship” with the movement.

“We engage with the Taliban at both its top level and local leadership level. The evolution of the military situation on the ground has not changed our relationship with the Taliban, and the current situation doesn’t change the way we seek to operate,” the spokeswoman stated.

On Sunday, the Taliban entered Kabul, after which President Ashraf Ghani announced resignation and left the country. Ghani said his decision was dictated by the desire to prevent violence as the militants were ready to carry out an attack on the capital.

Taliban spokesman Mohammad Naeem said that the movement had put an end to the 20-year war in the country. The new government format will be announced soon.

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