Winter Temperatures in Afghanistan claims 78 lives
At least 78 individuals have perished in frigid circumstances in Afghanistan in the past nine days, according to a Taliban spokesperson.
This has worsened the humanitarian situation that now affects millions of people who are living in the country.
Shafiullah Rahimi, a spokesperson for the Taliban’s Ministry of Disaster Management, told CNN that along with the loss of human life, more than 77,000 livestock had also frozen to death in recent days.
Temperatures fell as low as minus 28 degrees Celsius (minus 18 Fahrenheit) at the end of last week with fears that conditions could get even colder. The temperatures are well below average for this time of year, with the coldest conditions recorded in the north, according to CNN meteorologists.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) in Afghanistan said in a tweet Wednesday that livestock losses posed a further risk to families with more than 21 million people urgently needing food and agricultural support.
The Taliban takeover in August 2021 has plunged Afghanistan into an economic and humanitarian crisis.
At least half a dozen major foreign aid groups have temporarily suspended their operations in Afghanistan since December, when the Taliban ordered all local and international non-governmental organizations to stop their female employees from coming to work, or risk having their NGO licenses revoked.
Half of Afghanistan’s population is experiencing acute hunger, and while conflict has subsided, violence, fear and deprivation remain, a UN report in November found.
