Afghanistan’s Taliban leadership said the ban on Afghan women working for the United Nations was an “internal matter”, after the international body expressed concern over the decision and said it would review its operations there.

In the Taliban’s first statement on the decision since the UN admitted it had heard of the new restrictions last week, spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said today that the policy “should be respected by all sides”.

The United Nations said it could not accept the decision as it would violate its charter. They have asked all their staff — men and women — to stay away from their offices while they consult and review their operations until May 5. Yesterday, Tuesday, the UN Mission in Afghanistan said that the Taliban leadership will be responsible for any negative impact on humanitarian aid due to the ban.

In his statement, Mujahid blamed foreign governments for the humanitarian crisis caused by banking sanctions and the freezing of the Afghan central bank’s assets abroad, some of which have been placed in a Swiss trust.

Diplomats and officials in Afghanistan and around the world have expressed concerns that donors may withdraw their support for Afghanistan’s humanitarian aid program, the world’s largest, and that programs and the ability to reach women will not be possible without female workers.

Taliban officials said in December that most Afghan women NGO workers would not be allowed to work.

The UN’s humanitarian agency has said that its massive 2023 funding plan for Afghanistan is less than 5% funded.

“If funding is not urgently secured, millions of Afghans will begin to face the specter of hunger, disease and death,” he said today.