UN to send half of its staff out of Afghanistan
Source: Agencies |
November 6, 2009, Friday
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THE United Nations said yesterday it will send more than half its international staff either out of Afghanistan or into more secure compounds following last week's deadly Taliban attack against UN workers - the most direct targeting of its employees during decades of work in the country.
About 600 nonessential staffers will be affected by the move, the UN said. The announcement came as the head of the UN mission issued a stern warning to newly re-elected President Hamid Karzai that he must crack down on corruption or risk losing international support.
The UN is still reeling from the pre-dawn assault on a guesthouse in the capital that left five of its staff dead.
The UN insists it remains committed to Afghanistan, but its actions show how much security has degraded in the country and raise questions about the future of its work if attacks continue.
The 600 UN employees will be moved for three to four weeks to more secure locations both within and outside of Afghanistan while it tries to find safer permanent housing, spokesman Aleem Siddique said.
"We are not talking about pulling out," the head of the mission, Norwegian diplomat Kai Eide, said. "We are not talking about evacuation."
He said a number of options were being considered for those who have to leave the country, including Dubai.
Still, Eide said the UN is concerned about the deteriorating situation.
"There is a belief among some that the international commitment to Afghanistan will continue whatever happens because of the strategic importance of Afghanistan," Eide said. "I would like to emphasize that that is not correct. It is the public opinion in donor countries and in troop-contributing countries that decides on the strength of that commitment."
The majority of the UN's 1,100 international staff in Afghanistan lives in the capital, spread out in more than 90 guesthouses. The plan is to consolidate those living arrangements to better protect staff, Siddique said.
About 600 nonessential staffers will be affected by the move, the UN said. The announcement came as the head of the UN mission issued a stern warning to newly re-elected President Hamid Karzai that he must crack down on corruption or risk losing international support.
The UN is still reeling from the pre-dawn assault on a guesthouse in the capital that left five of its staff dead.
The UN insists it remains committed to Afghanistan, but its actions show how much security has degraded in the country and raise questions about the future of its work if attacks continue.
The 600 UN employees will be moved for three to four weeks to more secure locations both within and outside of Afghanistan while it tries to find safer permanent housing, spokesman Aleem Siddique said.
"We are not talking about pulling out," the head of the mission, Norwegian diplomat Kai Eide, said. "We are not talking about evacuation."
He said a number of options were being considered for those who have to leave the country, including Dubai.
Still, Eide said the UN is concerned about the deteriorating situation.
"There is a belief among some that the international commitment to Afghanistan will continue whatever happens because of the strategic importance of Afghanistan," Eide said. "I would like to emphasize that that is not correct. It is the public opinion in donor countries and in troop-contributing countries that decides on the strength of that commitment."
The majority of the UN's 1,100 international staff in Afghanistan lives in the capital, spread out in more than 90 guesthouses. The plan is to consolidate those living arrangements to better protect staff, Siddique said.
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