GENEVA: The chief of field operations of the United Nations children's agency expressed cautious optimism about working with Taliban officials following their seizure of power in Afghanistan, citing their early expressions of support for girls' education.
"We have ongoing discussions, we are quite optimistic based on those discussions," UNICEF's chief of field operations in Afghanistan, Mustapha Ben Messaoud, told a UN briefing, adding that 11 out of 13 field offices were currently operational.The Taliban ruled Afghanistan between 1996 and 2001 following strict Islamic law, forbidding women from working.
One Taliban health director in Herat, where UNICEF is the only UN agency present, had also asked female employees to report to duty, Ben Messaoud said. UNICEF had not yet established a direct communication with the Taliban in the capital Kabul, he added. "We call on the Taliban to demonstrate through their actions, not just their words, that the fears for the safety of so many people from so many different walks of life are addressed," he said.
Talking nonse