In a stark illustration of Afghanistan’s deepening hunger crisis, Ghulam Mohiddin and Nazo recount the devastating loss of their three young sons to malnutrition. The tiny graves in the Sheidaee settlement near Herat serve as a silent testament to the widespread mortality sweeping the nation’s youngest.
“Watching helplessly as my children cried out of hunger, it felt like my body was erupting in flames,” shared Ghulam, his voice heavy with grief. Nazo, clutching the memory of her lost infants, expressed a mother’s desperate hope: “I hope every day that angels would somehow put my babies back in our home.”
These personal tragedies are symptomatic of a national crisis. John Aylieff, the World Food Programme’s country director, highlighted the unprecedented scale of the hunger crisis, stating, “We started the year with the highest increase in child malnutrition ever recorded in Afghanistan. But things have got worse from there.” He warns that the withdrawal of crucial food assistance, exacerbated by a reduction in donor funding and the Taliban government’s policies, has left over three million children vulnerable.
The Taliban government attributes the dire situation to international sanctions and aid cuts, claiming they are doing what they can within their limited budget. However, their stance on women’s rights, including a ban on women working for NGOs, further complicates the delivery of essential aid.
The crisis is compounded by a severe drought and the forced return of millions of Afghans from neighbouring countries, straining already scarce resources. In the Sheidaee graveyard, an estimated two-thirds of the graves are for children, a grim indicator of the scale of the devastation.
Stories like Hanifa Sayedi’s, who struggles to afford basic food for her malnourished son Rafiullah and resorts to giving him sedatives to ease his hunger-induced pain, are heartbreakingly common. Doctors warn that such medication can have severe, even fatal, consequences for young children.
The situation in hospitals like the Badakhshan regional hospital is critical, with overcrowded wards and critically ill children. Tragically, the report notes that infants like Sana, Musleha, and Mutehara, all suffering from malnutrition and other ailments, succumbed to their conditions shortly after the visit.
With WFP’s funding set to expire in November, the urgency to address this humanitarian catastrophe is paramount. Without immediate intervention, the lives of countless more children hang precariously in the balance as winter approaches.