Frequently asked questions: Our work in Afghanistan

The ICRC is responding to the humanitarian needs in Afghanistan by providing basic health care and physical rehabilitation support, helping people establish livelihoods and earn money, reconnecting families that have been separated by the conflicts, and improving access to clean water, sanitary facilities and electricity, and visiting detainees to ensure humane treatment and living conditions. We work together with the Afghan Red Crescent Society and other partners of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.

The ICRC supports seven physical rehabilitation centres across Afghanistan, in Kabul, Nangarhar, Badakhshan, Balkh, Herat, Gulbahar and Helmand. In 2022, we helped more than 13,000 people with physical disabilities, including patients diagnosed with cerebral palsy.

The ICRC has a delegation in Kabul along with offices and physical rehabilitation centres throughout the country and works in close coordination with the Afghanistan Red Crescent Society and relevant national authorities to try and meet humanitarian needs of affected population.

If you or someone you know needs support, please visit our Find Help page. It provides guidance on how the ICRC may be able to assist, depending on your situation and location.

You can contact the ICRC in Afghanistan here:

Telephone: +93799550055 / +93701150000

The Afghan Red Crescent Society is the main provider in the country to help families restore contact with their loved ones. The ICRC team works jointly with the Afghan Red Crescent Society and provides its technical support in addressing these cases.

If you are in Afghanistan, you can visit the nearest Afghan Red Crescent Society branch or ICRC office where you live:

OR use the Restoring Family Links (RFL) hotline, +93729140641

OR email: KAB_Tracing_Services@icrc.org

If you have lost contact due to lack of connectivity, we recommend that you first wait a few days and approach the Afghan Red Crescent Society, once the telecommunications are restored, if you still cannot reach your loved one. 

If you are outside Afghanistan, please contact the nearest Red Cross or Red Crescent office in the country where you currently live.

Yes, the ICRC prioritizes assistance based on humanitarian needs, focusing on the most affected and vulnerable populations. We work to reach remote and difficult-to-access areas whenever possible.

At the moment, the ICRC is providing support to local facilities, to enable them to provide appropriate treatment and support to people affected by the conflict. We are not distributing food, cash or medicines directly to individuals or families. 

The ICRC works closely with the Afghan Red Crescent Society and other Movement partners to scale up assistance. Our teams are trained to respond to emergencies and have experience operating in conflict affected areas while upholding humanitarian principles.

The ICRC maintains confidential bilateral dialogue with the concerned authorities about the humanitarian situation and their obligations under IHL. In such situation, it is our mandate, as defined by the Geneva Conventions, to remind Parties of their obligations under IHL. In the framework of this recent escalation, the ICRC also stands ready to visit captured individuals who are detained by the Parties, support in the repatriation of the human remains of dead combatants or deceased civilians to their respective country and facilitate the transmission of information about persons who are separated, missing or deceased to the other Party, to ensure families know the fate of their loved ones.

Neutrality is central to the ICRC’s identity. We do not take sides in political or military conflicts and operate solely based on humanitarian needs, with the consent of relevant authorities. All activities are guided by Fundamental Principles of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, including neutrality, as well as impartiality, and independence. We also engage bilaterally with the parties on a confidential basis.

We are observing the situation with concern. Afghanistan is already experiencing a protracted humanitarian crisis, resulting from past decades of conflict and violence, coupled with the influx of Afghans returnees from Pakistan and Iran who are returning and the impacts of the climate change, particularly visible in the water scarcity that characterize large areas of the country. A further escalation will likely worsen the situation of civilians who already live in hardship. Any sustained escalation could lead to a serious humanitarian crisis.

Like every National Society (NS) in our Movement, the ARCS remains legally an auxiliary to the public authorities in the humanitarian field, but also operate under the Fundamental Principles of neutrality, impartiality and independence. This means that all decisions, activities and responses are based entirely on humanitarian need – never on political considerations. 

No. We operate without religious affiliation. We are a neutral, impartial and independent humanitarian organization and we work with impartiality as to nationality, race, gender, religious beliefs, class and political opinions. 

Under international humanitarian law, all those caught up in war, no matter their affiliation, should be protected. 

This doesn’t preclude us from speaking to religious groups, but this engagement is purely practical: we always speak to all parties involved, so we can get safe access to people who need support.