exclusive
Taliban security authorities have arrested four employees of the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ). GIZ has closed its offices in Afghanistan until further notice.
It is a new escalation in an already broken relationship: security forces of the radical Islamic Taliban in Afghanistan have arrested four employees of the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ). This was confirmed by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) upon request WDR Investigative. The employees are local Afghan staff who are currently working in Afghanistan on behalf of GIZ.
When asked, a spokesman for the Federal Development Ministry said: “We are taking this situation very seriously and are working through all the channels available to us to get our colleagues released. In order not to jeopardize these efforts, we cannot provide any further details.” GIZ is the German development organization and is currently still active in Afghanistan with over 250 employees.
Wave of arrests against GIZ employees
The background is apparently a wave of arrests by the Afghan secret service. Taliban security forces temporarily detained four GIZ employees in October, but released them after a short time.
At the beginning of November, another GIZ employee was apparently arrested by secret service agents. However, this man is said to be in prison to this day. Ten days later, Afghan security forces arrested two more GIZ employees at Kabul airport as they wanted to travel from there to Dubai. They are also said to be in custody to this day. Mobile phones and laptops are also said to have been confiscated from them. This emerges from a confidential EU security report WDR Investigative is present.
After WDRAccording to information, a fourth GIZ employee has now been arrested. The employees in question all work for GIZ’s risk management. The Taliban are reportedly accusing the GIZ employees of espionage activities.
The radical Islamic Taliban, who took over the government in Afghanistan after the withdrawal of Western troops in 2021, could not be reached for an official statement.
GIZ offices in Afghanistan remain closed
The arrests also raise questions within the federal government as to whether and how GIZ can continue to work in Afghanistan. The ministry said: “The incident raises questions about the current and future security assessment in Afghanistan that we cannot yet answer today and based on the information available,” said a spokesman.
One must “acknowledge that there will be a changed security situation if it is not possible to solve the cases quickly and end the detentions.”
Most recently, a so-called “full lockdown” was ordered for GIZ employees in Afghanistan. GIZ offices in Afghanistan remain closed until further notice, some employees are working from home, others have apparently gone into hiding for fear of persecution.
Endangerment of local staff is a recurring issue
The security situation of local staff who worked for German organizations in Afghanistan has repeatedly concerned the German public in the past. A parliamentary committee of inquiry of the German Bundestag is currently examining how the federal government will deal with its Afghan local staff until 2021.
At that time, the Taliban took power in Afghanistan after international military troops withdrew from the country. Numerous former local employees tried to flee the country. Many remain in Afghanistan and fear persecution from the Taliban.
The Foreign Office has not reopened its embassy in Kabul since the Taliban came to power. However, local staff in Afghanistan are still under contract for GIZ.