and analysts point to the difficulty of narrowing down what is lifesaving assistance however food aid certainly but what about other forms of support such as maternal care which has helped more than halve afghanistans maternal mortality rate since the 1990smajor nongovernmental aid organizations say that without female workers its impossible for them to effectively reach the women and children who make up 75 of those in need thats because of afghanistans conservative customs and the talibans rules prohibiting contact between unrelated men and womenour suspensions are operational necessities said anastasia moran senior officer for humanitarian policy at the international rescue committee its not being punitive its not trying to withdraw services its not a negotiating tacticthe taliban crackdown is recreating conditions from their first time in power in the mid1990s when successive edicts drove women out of schools jobs aid work and increasingly into their homes taliban leaders then ultimately ordered households to paint their windows black so that no passersby could see the women inside it left women and children in femaleheaded households little means to access money or help to stay alivethe us invasion that followed the attacks of sept 11 2001 ended that first era of taliban rule the biden administration and aid groups all cite a determination to avoid a repeat of the fractured rivalrydriven and often ad hoc international response to the taliban abuses in the 1990s including the crackdown then on womenun security council members met friday behind closed doors to consider the international response after 11 of the 15 member nations reiterated the councils demand for unhindered access for humanitarian actors regardless of genderthe humanitarian crisis brought on by the talibans ban comes at a politically sensitive moment for biden with republicans now leading the house and pledging to investigate the chaotic withdrawal from afghanistanrep michael mccaul a foreignpolicy veteran newly in charge of the house foreign affairs committee called the crackdown on women part of the disastrous consequences of the us withdrawal mccaul rtexas said his committee will push for answers from administration officials on their handling of afghanistan policythis administration promised consequences if the taliban revoked its promise to uphold the human rights of afghan women and girls mccaul said in a statement to the associated press unfortunately it is no surprise to see the taliban violate this commitment and now consequences must be swiftly deliveredalmost all involved expressed hope that quiet diplomacy led by un officials over the next few weeks could lead the taliban to soften their stance allowing female aid workers and aid organizations overall to resume their dutiesun and other officials are meeting daily on the matter with the talibans most senior leaders in kabul who have access to the talibans supreme leader haibatullah akhundzada and his associates in the southern city of kandahar a us official saidsome caution the international community may face years of little influence over afghanistans rulersin the meantime the mission for those assisting isolated abused women was clear said masuda sultan