Journalism of Courage
Since the chaotic August 15 Taliban takeover of Kabul, an already war-devastated Afghanistan economy once kept alive by international donations is now on the verge of collapse. There isn’t enough money for hospitals. In pic: A drug addict collects scraps of aluminium and plastic in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2021. (AP)
The bitter cold of Afghanistan’s winter has small children huddled beneath blankets in makeshift camps. Sick babies in hospitals lie wrapped in their mothers' all-enveloping burqas. Long lines at food distribution centers have become overwhelming as Afghanistan sinks deeper into desperate times. In pic: Saliha holds her four-month old baby Najeeb as he undergoes treatment at the malnutrition ward of the Indira Gandhi Children's Hospital in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Dec. 8, 2021. (AP)
The World Health Organization is warning of millions of children suffering malnutrition, and the United Nations says 97% of Afghans will soon be living below the poverty line. In pic: A man distributes bread to Afghan women outside a bakery in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Thursday, Dec, 2, 2021. (AP)
For millions living in camps for the displaced or sitting outside government ministries seeking help, the only source of warmth is to huddle around open wood-burning fires. In pic: A family warms up next to a makeshift fire outside the Directorate of Disaster office where they are camped, in Herat, Afghanistan, Monday, Nov. 29, 2021. (AP)
Nearly 80% of Afghanistan’s previous government’s budget came from the international community. That money, now cut off, financed hospitals, schools, factories and government ministries. In pic: Two brothers carrying canisters with a wheelbarrow on their way to collect water from a stagnant pool, about 3 kilometers (2 miles) from their home in Kamar Kalagh village outside Herat, Afghanistan, Friday, Nov. 26, 2021. (AP)
Sanctions have crippled banks while the U.N., the United States and others struggle to figure out how to get hundreds of millions of dollars of humanitarian aid to Afghans while bypassing the Taliban. In pic: An Afghan man collects scraps of alluminium and plastic, in Herat, Afghanistan, Monday, Nov. 22, 2021. (AP)
For many of Afghanistan’s poorest, bread is their only staple. Women line up outside bakeries in the city, young children arrive before dawn to get bread. The majority scramble to find food, and fuel. In pic: Women queue to receive cash at a money distribution organised by the World Food Program in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Saturday, Nov. 20, 2021. (AP)
The statistics provided by the UN are grim: Almost 24 million people in Afghanistan, around 60% percent of the population, suffer from acute hunger. As many as 8.7 million Afghans are coping with famine. In pic: A boy carries bread in Herat, Afghanistan, Thursday , Nov. 25, 2021. (AP)
