Over 1 million Afghan children could face severe malnutrition
NBC
According to the UN, 1.1M children under the age of five will likely face severe acute malnutrition, also known as severe wasting, this year in Afghanistan.
Severe wasting is the most lethal form of malnutrition. Food is so lacking that a child's immune system is compromised, making them vulnerable to multiple bouts of disease. Eventually, they become unable to absorb nutrients and may die without intervention.
Drought, while a contributing factor to Afghanistan's crisis, is not the driving force; sanctions are. Western nations' decisions to cut the Taliban off from international finance and development aid have enveloped the country in a crisis that's accelerating at an unprecedented pace. While Western countries have withdrawn their military presence, the war continues on a new battlefront.
The Taliban's return to power and the humanitarian crisis that followed have confronted the West with a hopeless dilemma: How can they provide international assistance to a country that desperately needs it while ensuring the aid money doesn't enrich Taliban's corrupt leaders? The answer: they can't.