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Student in Afghanistan (in October 2021)
Photo: Majid Saeedi/Getty Images
A group of independent UN experts has criticized the US policy in Afghanistan.
This is contributing to the suffering of Afghan women by freezing assets of the Afghan central bank.
The fortune consists in part of aid funds that have been accumulated for decades.
In a statement, the 14 experts complain that the US government is making life even more difficult for Afghan women by blocking the billions stored in the US.
They also criticize the "spreading gender-based discrimination" under the Taliban, which further restricts women's rights.
"Gender-based violence has long posed a serious threat to women and girls, but US action has made the situation even worse," the statement said.
23 million people in Afghanistan depend on food aid.
According to the UN experts, the current humanitarian crisis is "disproportionately affecting women and children".
Afghan funds have been frozen since the Taliban took power last August and the withdrawal of foreign troops.
In February, US President Joe Biden extended the measure.
The US government said it would allocate half of the money to aid to the Afghan people, while the other half would go to the Taliban's legal fight against terrorism.
The UN experts commissioned by the Geneva-based Human Rights Council called the provisions “too broad”.
They would lead to "overzealous" compliance with sanctions, which would subsequently "deny the Afghan people access to basic humanitarian supplies." The experts said they had already conveyed their concerns to Washington and were awaiting a response.
The United Nations and governments around the world, including the US administration, have sharply criticized the Taliban regime for restricting the rights of women and girls.
After the Taliban took power last August, they severely restricted girls' access to schooling.
Pupils from the seventh grade onwards are still banned from attending school.
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Abe, Reuters