UN to relocate Afghanistan staff
Published on: 5th November, 2009
The UN says it will temporarily relocate 600 of its “non-essential” foreign staff in Afghanistan.
The personnel would return to work once security was strengthened at unsecured accommodation used by the UN, it said.
The UN said the transfer would not affect work such as aid delivery, as this was done by local Afghan staff.
The move follows a dawn raid by the Taliban last week on a hostel in the capital, Kabul, which left five UN workers and three Afghans dead.
The attack on the private Bekhtar guesthouse in the Shar-i-Naw district last Wednesday was the deadliest on the UN in Afghanistan since the fall of the Taliban regime in 2001.
On Monday, also citing security concerns, the UN halted long-term development work in north-western Pakistan, a region on the border with Afghanistan that is widely regarded as a haven for Taliban and al-Qaeda militants.
‘No evacuation’
The head of the UN’s Afghan mission, Kai Eide, said some of the staff – mostly “non-front line” personnel – would be moved within the country, some others outside.
“We are not talking about pulling out. We are not talking about evacuation,” the Norwegian diplomat told a Kabul news conference on Thursday.
The temporary relocation of staff was likely to take three to four weeks, the UN said.
The UN has up to 1,300 international staff based in Afghanistan.
The 600 staff to be withdrawn represent 12% of the total UN workforce – including local staff – in Afghanistan.
The personnel to be moved come from all UN agencies and different Afghan cities.
In last week’s attack, UN employees tried to flee as three heavily armed Taliban militants hiding explosive vests under police uniforms stormed the hostel.
The three gunmen were shot dead.
The guesthouse – which was used by the UN and other international organisations – was gutted by fire.
Foreign officials have warned that the Kabul government’s reputation for corruption and the recent crisis surrounding the fraud-marred presidential election are fuelling the Taliban insurgency.
Security has continued to deteriorate, despite the presence of more than 100,000 Nato-led troops, including about 68,000 Americans.
US President Barack Obama is currently considering a request from the US commander in Afghanistan for another 40,000 troops.
UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown last month announced 500 extra British soldiers would be sent.
