Web Desk

ISLAMABAD: Worsening hunger in Afghanistan is forcing families into desperate measures as unemployment, poverty and cuts to international aid deepen the country&rsquo;s humanitarian crisis, a BBC World report says. According to the report, hundreds of men, desperate for work and food, gather each morning in the dusty square of Chaghcharan, Ghor province&rsquo;s capital, hoping for a few hours&rsquo; casual labour to keep their families alive. Juma Khan, a local resident told BBC World that he has found only three days of work in the past six weeks, earning 150&ndash;200 afghani ($2.35&ndash;$3.13) . &ldquo;My children went to bed hungry three nights in a row.&rdquo; &ldquo;I live in fear that my children will die of hunger,&rdquo; he was quoted as saying. The United Nations says three in four Afghans cannot meet basic needs and about 4.7 million people are one step away from famine. Severe drought, collapsing livelihoods and steep cuts to international aid since the Taliban returned to power in 2021 have pushed provinces such as Ghor toward catastrophe. At the square, men scramble for stale loaves when a baker hands them out. Reporters witnessed only three hires during a two-hour period. &ldquo;I got a call saying my children hadn&#39;t eaten for two days,&rdquo; said Rabani. &ldquo;I felt like I should kill myself. But then I thought, how will that help my family?&rdquo; Families describe unbearable choices. Abdul Rashid Azimi, holding his seven-year-old twins, said he has considered selling them to feed the rest of his children. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m willing to sell my daughters,&rdquo; he said through tears. His wife, Kayhan, said the household survives on bread soaked in hot water; teenage sons polish shoes while another son collects rubbish for cooking fuel. In another case, a father said he transferred custody of his five-year-old daughter to a relative to pay for surgery for appendicitis and a liver cyst. The arrangement raised 200,000 afghani (about $3,200); the relative agreed custody for up to five years. &ldquo;If I had money, I would never have taken this decision,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;But then I thought, what if she dies without the surgery?&rdquo; Chaghcharan&rsquo;s provincial hospital shows the human cost. The neonatal unit is overcrowded; most babies are underweight and many struggle to breathe. A pair of premature twins were placed on oxygen; one died a few hours later. Nurse Fatima Husseini said there are days when as many as three infants die. Doctors say essential medicines and equipment are often unavailable and families must buy drugs privately or take sick children home because they cannot afford care. The Taliban government blames the country&rsquo;s economic collapse on the previous era and foreign withdrawal and calls for depolitizised humanitarian aid. Donors, including the United States and the United Kingdom, say Taliban restrictions on women and girls and other policy concerns have influenced funding cuts. Humanitarian agencies warn that without urgent, scaled-up assistance, more families will be forced into desperate measures and more children will die. Aid groups are calling for predictable funding and unrestricted access to reach hard-hit provinces such as Ghor.

Food rations for vulnerable families in Afghanistan are to be cut by the World Food Programme.

Afghanistan

Afghanistan’s deepening hunger crisis, fueled by poverty, unemployment and aid cuts, force desperate families to sell their daughters to survive starvation.

Afghan fathers sell children to survive amid deepening crisis: Report

ISLAMABAD: The United Nations has warned that hunger and food insecurity are worsening across Afghanistan, with women and children bearing the brunt of the country&rsquo;s deepening humanitarian crisis. The UN World Food Program (WFP) said in its report that Afghanistan continues to face overlapping challenges, including economic collapse, high unemployment and climate-related shocks that have destroyed livelihoods and left millions struggling to afford basic necessities. Rising regional tensions have also contributed to higher food prices, adding pressure on already vulnerable households. &ldquo;The little food we can afford we give to our children, but that is not enough,&rdquo; said Raqiba Ahmadi, a resident of Faizabad in northeastern Badakhshan province. She said her youngest daughter is recovering from malnutrition while her husband remains unemployed. Vulnerable sections of the population are in severe danger of malnutrition in the country due to a shortage of resources and a sudden surge in prices of staple foods. The WFP said persistent funding shortages have significantly reduced supplies of specialized nutritional food used to treat malnourished women and children. The agency warned that without additional financial support, millions of Afghans will remain at risk of severe hunger and acute malnutrition. The organization said it needed urgent funding to support millions amid a surging hunger crisis in Afghanistan.

Malnutrition in Afghanistan - (File Photo: UNICEF)

The UN warns that worsening hunger in Afghanistan is pushing millions, especially women and children, toward severe food insecurity and acute malnutrition.

Afghanistan hunger crisis worsens; women, children hardest hit, says UN

Reuters

LISBON: Portugal will recognize a Palestinian state on Sunday, the Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Friday.The Official Declaration of Recognition will take place even before next week&#39;s High-Level Conference, it added.Foreign Minister Paulo Rangel already said this week that the country was considering the recognition of a Palestinian state during a visit to the UK.Unlike neighboring Spain, whose government recognized Palestinian statehood in May 2024 alongside Ireland and Norway and called on other EU countries to do the same, Portugal has taken a more cautious approach, saying it wanted to work out a common position with other EU countries first.Outcry against IsraelOnly a handful of the 27 European Union members recognise Palestine as a State, mostly former Communist countries as well as Sweden and Cyprus.The U.N. General Assembly approved the de facto recognition of the sovereign state of Palestine in November 2012 by upgrading its observer status at the world body to &quot;non-member state&quot; from &quot;entity&quot;.Israel is facing a growing global outcry, given that its war against Hamas in Gaza is causing many deaths, starvation and devastation.

Middle East

Europe

Portugal will officially recognize a Palestinian state on Sunday, ahead of a High-Level Conference, marking a cautious shift compared to other EU countries, amid ongoing conflict and international pressure on Israel.

Articles tagged with "Humanitarian crisis"

Afghan fathers sell children to survive amid deepening crisis: Report

Afghanistan hunger crisis worsens; women, children hardest hit, says UN

Portugal says it will recognize Palestinian state on Sunday