Afghanistan’s humanitarian crisis is as severe as it is startling: food shortages, hunger and economic collapse plague the people of Afghanistan, where the Taliban came into power after the U.S. withdrew its troops in August 2021.
The patients in a children’s hospital in Afghanistan are underweight: 4-month-old Murtaza weighs just 6 pounds, 5 ounces.
“We are so worried,” the infant’s mother told Imtiaz Tyab of CBS News.
Murtaza is one of the many children seeking treatment for malnutrition at the Kabul clinic.
A doctor at the hospital said the situation is as grim as it appears. One to two children die from malnourishment at the hospital each day, the doctor told CBS News.
Such statistics are among the most striking examples of Afghanistan’s humanitarian crisis: severe food shortages, hunger and economic collapse.
After the U.S. withdrew its troops in August 2021, the Taliban quickly took control of the country. And the situation has only gotten worse.
One person who spoke to CBS News said life under the Taliban is “terrible.”
“It's a slow death for us. Life is not worth living when there's no food and no work,” he said.
These people hope for handouts from a bakery, as they cannot afford the loaves of bread that cost just 11 cents. Since the Taliban’s takeover, the Biden administration has frozen $7 billion in Afghan assets. The U.S. says it can’t be sure those funds wouldn’t be routed to terror groups.
Half of that money may be used to compensate families of the victims of the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks.
The U.S. State Department says it’s exploring ways to get the other half—some $3.5 billion—into the hands of the Afghan people.
But for now, none of it is.
Hungry Afghans must rely on the kindness of their neighbors – like a man who purchased several dollars’ worth of bread to give out.
The United Nations says that 90% of Afghans don’t have enough food. And with winter approaching, the problem is likely to become even more dire.
