New York – The United Nations (UN) want to provide around six million dollars for the protection of employees and UN facilities in Afghanistan.
In the coming year, the proposed funds will primarily be used to subsidize the monthly wages of Taliban fighters who guard UN facilities. The UN also wants to use it to pay a monthly food subsidy as part of an agreement with the former US-backed Afghan government. These plans are in an internal UN report that the Reuters news agency was able to see on Tuesday.
The financial injections are also about protecting employees of the Interior Ministry, led by the radical Islamic Taliban, whose boss is under UN and US sanctions and is wanted by the FBI.
A person familiar with the matter confirmed the protective measure to Reuters on condition of anonymity.
“As an employer, the United Nations has a duty to strengthen the capacities of the host states and – where necessary – to supplement them when UN personnel are working in unsafe areas,” wrote UN spokesman Farhan Haq in an email in response to questions from Reuters on the proposed payments. He did not deny the content of the document.
The international community is faced with the task of providing the aid it needs without supporting and legitimizing the Taliban, who are classified as terrorists.
Experts therefore raise the question of whether the money does not conflict with the US and UN sanctions and whether the UN could expose an abuse of the payments by the Taliban government.
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