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UN food agency alarmed by Afghan food, fuel prices

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An official with the U.N. food agency warned Friday that with Russia’s war in Ukraine taking an increasing toll on the global economy, the ripples of that conflict will further increase food and fuel prices in Afghanistan.

Currently, as many as 95% of the country’s 38 million people don’t have enough to eat or money to buy food, The Associated Press reported.

Shelley Thakral, a spokeswoman for the World Food Program, said that food prices in Afghanistan rose nearly 40% over the last eight months.

The WFP has spent $1 billion feeding millions of Afghans this year but needs another $1.6 billion, Thakral added.

“The worrying thing, I think and this includes Afghanistan as well as all the other hunger spots across the world, is the rise in food and fuel prices,” said Thakral.

So far, donor countries have not sidelined Afghanistan but she said they “have to dig deeper” as Europe deals with the shockwaves of the war and the 3.2 million refugees who have fled Ukraine since Russia launched its invasion on February 24.

Thakral’s remarks echoed those of U.N. refugee chief Filippo Grandi, who warned during a visit to Kabul on Tuesday that the war in Ukraine could siphon off money from humanitarian crisis elsewhere, including in Afghanistan, and that soaring food prices could cripple humanitarian efforts.

While most of Afghanistan’s wheat supplies come from Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, Thakral said the increasing food and fuel cost as a result of the war could add up to 20% to the costs of providing humanitarian assistance, AP reported.

When the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) swept to power in August, international donor money, which paid more than 80% percent of Afghanistan’s bills, dried up and the country’s economy went into free fall.

There was food on Kabul markets on Friday but Masihullah, standing by his small grocery stall, said no one has money. Most people don’t have jobs, Masihullah said.

A sack of flour costs nearly $28 and most Afghans are now below the poverty line, which means they earn $1.90 a day or less, AP reported.

Thakral said 80% of Afghans are in debt because they have had to borrow to pay for food or medicines and even working Afghans look to the WFP for food aid because they don’t make enough to be able to afford the food on the market.

A Human Rights Watch report released Thursday said that since January, about 13,000 newborns have died from malnutrition and hunger-related diseases in Afghanistan and 3.5 million children need nutritional support.

“If the countries we import food from face a challenge, we face a challenge,” said Masihullah.

“There is war between Russia and Ukraine, so we are affected … there is a high increase in prices of oil and wheat.”

A U.K. pledging summit to be held later this month expects to raise $4.4 billion to stave off a worsening humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, said Thakral.

“Right now in Afghanistan, what we need to sustain is the attention on the people here,” she said.

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Mullah Baradar visits Hairatan Port, reviews plans for 24-hour services

According to the decisions made, the staffing of government institutions at the port will be increased as needed.

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Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, accompanied by a delegation, visited Hairatan Port on Wednesday, according to the Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Office.

During the visit, discussions focused on ensuring the provision of 24-hour services at Hairatan Port and addressing the existing challenges faced by government institutions operating there, including the ministries of Finance, Industry and Commerce, Foreign Affairs, Transport and Aviation, and Public Works, as well as the Hairatan Commissionerate, the Food and Drug Authority, the Standards and Quality Authority, and some state-owned corporations. Necessary decisions were taken to resolve these issues.

According to the decisions made, the staffing of government institutions at the port will be increased as needed. Large and standard parking facilities, administrative buildings, cargo loading and unloading centers, advanced laboratories, standard roads, and cold storage facilities will be constructed.

The existing railway lines will be expanded, transportation vehicles will be provided to facilitate transport and logistics, digital weighing scales will be installed for measuring heavy loads, and mobile scanners will be deployed to prevent smuggling.

The office stated that these measures are expected to enable the uninterrupted delivery of efficient 24-hour export and import services at Hairatan Port, which, in turn, will increase the volume of bilateral trade between Afghanistan and Uzbekistan and contribute positively to economic growth.

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India slams Pakistan at UNSC over civilian deaths in Afghanistan airstrikes

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India has sharply criticized Pakistan at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) over civilian deaths caused by recent airstrikes in Afghanistan, accusing Islamabad of violating international law and Afghan sovereignty.

Speaking at a Annual UNSC Open Debate on “Protection of civilians in armed conflict”, India’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Harish Parvathaneni, said it was “hypocritical” for Pakistan to speak about international law and Islamic solidarity while carrying out airstrikes during Ramadan that reportedly killed civilians, including women and children.

“It is ironic that Pakistan, with its long-tainted record of genocidal acts, has chosen to refer to issues that are strictly internal to India. The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan has reported that in the first three months of 2026, 750 civilian deaths and injuries were documented in Afghanistan as a result of cross-border armed violence perpetrated by Pakistani military forces, most of which occurred due to air strikes,” he said.

Parvathaneni then said that Pakistan was behind the airstrike on Omid Addiction Treatment Hospital in Kabul, which killed 269 people, all civilians.

“The UNAMA documentation attributed 94 of 95 incidents of civilian casualties to Pakistani Security forces. The world has not forgotten that it was during the holy month of Ramadan in March this year, at a time of peace, reflection, and mercy, that Pakistan conducted a barbaric airstrike on the Omid Addiction Treatment Hospital in Kabul. Again, according to UNAMA, this cowardly and unconscionable act of violence claimed the lives of 269 civilians and injured a further 122 in a facility which can by no means be justified as a military target,” he said.

The Indian envoy further condemned Pakistan for “ignoring” international calls to protect civilians.

“It is hypocritical to espouse high principles of international law while targeting innocent civilians in the dark. The air strikes by Pakistan occurred at the conclusion of tarawih evening prayers, when numerous patients were leaving the masjid, as per UNAMA,” he said, referring to Pakistan’s strikes on Afghanistan earlier this year.

Parvathaneni then stated that such “heinous acts of aggression” by Pakistan should not come as a surprise, as it was a country that “bombs its own people and conducts systematic genocide.”

 

 

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Afghanistan completes transfer of 30,000 Hajj pilgrims to Saudi Arabia

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Afghanistan’s Ministry of Hajj and Religious Affairs has announced the successful completion of the transfer of 30,000 Afghan pilgrims to Saudi Arabia for this year’s Hajj pilgrimage.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, the ministry said the pilgrims were transported by Ariana Afghan Airlines and Kam Air, with all pilgrims arriving in Saudi Arabia aboard a total of 97 flights.

According to the ministry, the transfer process was conducted in two phases. During the first phase, more than 14,800 pilgrims were flown directly to Medina on 48 flights. In the second phase, over 15,000 additional pilgrims were transported to Mecca via Jeddah Airport on 49 flights.

The ministry added that all Afghan pilgrims have now been accommodated in the central “Mahbas al-Jinn” area near the Grand Mosque in Makkah.

It also noted that the necessary coordination has been completed with Saudi authorities and service providers to facilitate the movement of pilgrims to the holy sites of Mina, Arafat, and Muzdalifah. Essential services, including transportation, food, and healthcare, have also been arranged.

Nearly two million Muslims from around the world are expected to gather in Makkah for the annual Hajj pilgrimage, which is scheduled to begin next Monday.

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