Senior UN officials said a severe earthquake in Afghanistan, already ravaged by drought and poverty, has posed another emergency for the country.
He said on Thursday that most people in the world are facing the threat of famine in Afghanistan and that human rights violations by the country's new Taliban rulers are on the rise.
The UN Head of Humanitarian Affairs, Martin Griffiths, and UN Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan, Ramiz Alkabarov, noted the grave difficulties and threats facing Afghanistan's population of 38 million.
Officials made these statements at a meeting of the Security Council after Wednesday's severe earthquake in Afghanistan.
According to the state media of Afghanistan, about a thousand people have died in this earthquake. However, the United Nations has estimated the death of about 770 people due to the earthquake in Paktika and Khost provinces. Hundreds of others were also injured, prompting officials to warn that the casualties could rise. The work of extricating the bodies from the rubble was going on on Thursday as well.
Martin Griffiths said in this online meeting that the political and economic landscape of Afghanistan has changed since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August last year and the people of the country are facing "unbelievable human suffering".
"Three-fourths of the provinces are affected by the worst drought in 30 years, which is expected to result in below-average crop production," he said.
Griffiths said that the country's 25 million population is living in poverty. This figure is double compared to 2011. Of these, 66 lakh people are in "emergency".
He said that most of the people in the world are affected by the famine in Afghanistan.
Alkabarov said that the earthquake has posed another problem for the people.
He said the rise of armed opposition groups against the Taliban is creating uncertainties about security there.
