Foreign ministers from 12 countries, including the U.S., Britain and a number of European Union countries, have called on the Taliban-led government of Afghanistan to reverse its decision to ban women from working in humanitarian aid groups.

The Taliban's reckless and dangerous order prohibiting women staff members of national and international nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) from working puts millions of Afghans who depend on humanitarian aid for their survival at risk, the foreign ministers of the United States, Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Norway, Switzerland, Britain, the Netherlands and the EU said in a statement.

Representatives of the countries that signed the appeal called on the Taliban to reverse the decision.

The Taliban continues to show its disrespect for the rights, freedoms and welfare of the Afghan people, especially women and girls, and its disinterest in normal relations with the international community, the statement said.