Taliban Pledge Safety For Humanitarian Workers: UN

Women's freedoms in Afghanistan were sharply curtailed under the Taliban's 1996-2001 rule.

The Taliban on Sunday pledged to guarantee the safety of humanitarian workers and aid access in Afghanistan in a meeting with the UN humanitarian chief in Kabul, a UN spokesman said. Martin Griffiths was in the Afghan capital on Sunday for several days of meetings with Taliban leadership amid a looming humanitarian disaster in the country newly under the control of the Taliban. "The authorities pledged that the safety and security of humanitarian staff, and humanitarian access to people in need, will be guaranteed and that humanitarian workers -- both men and women -- will be guaranteed freedom of movement," a statement from UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. Griffiths reiterated in the meeting that the humanitarian community was committed to delivering "impartial and independent humanitarian assistance," the statement added.