The Taliban have said they will no longer protect Red Cross workers in Afghanistan, after it alleged the aid group was failing its prisoners held in a Kabul jail.

The insurgent movement said it would not guarantee the lives and property of the international humanitarian charity and criticised its conduct.

International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) operations have already been significantly scaled back in the country after seven staff were killed last year.

More than 1,000 Red Cross staff work in the country, and the organisation says it has supported those caught in the country's long-running conflicts for 30 years.

The group has run medical centres and rehabilitation centres for the wounded for 30 years and used its reputation for impartiality to gain access to all sides. It makes prison visits to ensure detainees are being treated well and repatriates bodies to both sides after clashes. In 2010 it was disclosed the group had also given first aid training to Taliban fighters.