US announces $144 million in humanitarian aid for people of Afghanistan

Washington: The US Secretary of State Tony Blinken announced on Thursday that the United States will roll out USD144 million in a bid to help the people of Afghanistan who have been facing a grave humanitarian crisis since the atrocious Taliban takeover.

Blinken also added that the financial assistance would be provided directly to independent international and non-governmental humanitarian organisations, including the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), International Organization for Migration (IOM), and the World Health Organization (WHO), following extensive vetting and monitoring.

“This funding provides support directly to some of the more than 18 million vulnerable Afghans in need in the region, including Afghan refugees in neighbouring



countries,” he said.

“To be clear, this humanitarian assistance will benefit the people of Afghanistan and not the Taliban, whom we will continue to hold accountable for the commitments they have made,” he asserted.

Observing that Afghanistan’s neighbours have long hosted one of the largest and most protracted refugee situations in the world, Blinken thanked the host countries and urged them to keep their borders open to Afghans seeking international protection.

“With this new humanitarian funding, we will continue to support our partners in the region with lifesaving assistance and protection services to Afghan refugees, while we continue to support Afghans in need inside Afghanistan,” Blinken said.