After decades of war and intolerance, there was finally a glimmer of hope in the midst of the terrible situation suffered by the population of Afghanistan, when the UN managed to unblock the delivery of humanitarian aid and thus save millions of people from death.
By Guillermo Alvarado
After decades of war and intolerance, there was finally a glimmer of hope in the midst of the terrible situation suffered by the population of Afghanistan, when the UN managed to unblock the delivery of humanitarian aid and thus save millions of people from death.
The departure of foreign troops from the Central Asian country at the end of August did not mean the end of the hardships, but rather added new problems due to the application of international sanctions of all kinds against the Taliban government.
Apart from the ills arising from the recently concluded military occupation and the West's intolerance of the new authorities, the country has also recently suffered the longest and most severe drought in living memory, which ruined numerous harvests.
As a result, of the nearly 40 million inhabitants, nearly half are suffering from varying degrees of malnutrition and nine million are on the verge of starvation, including many children who are already dying at home, in the fields or in hospitals where there are no resources to help them.
The situation is so dire that many parents are forced to make traumatic decisions, such as choosing which of their sons or daughters to sell to save the others.
In this bleak landscape, the measure adopted at the UN Security Council is a small light, especially now that the rigors of winter, which is cruelest when there is no food on the table, are already being felt.
However, this does not mean that the assistance will arrive soon, especially after the United States demanded guarantees that these resources will in no way become a source of financing for the Taliban, which complicates the procedures.
Instead of putting obstacles in the way, the first economic and military power should recognize its enormous responsibility in this tragedy and facilitate actions to feed a starving people who are guilty neither of the war nor of the government that replaced the invaders.
Since the installation of the new authorities in Kabul, the White House has blocked any access of Afghanistan to the global financial system and prevents the use of the international reserves deposited in US banks, valued at ten billion dollars.
This is one of the many tragedies that mark a dismal year for our entire species.
