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Afghans need sustainable solutions to avoid catastrophe: NRC
The people of Afghanistan need sustainable solutions to avoid a catastrophe, the Norwegian Refugee Council’s country director in Afghanistan said in a statement on Monday.
“Two years since the change of authorities in Afghanistan a humanitarian tragedy is unfolding. The situation is driven by a devastating mix of food insecurity and climate change, funding cuts, operational restrictions, and the absence of effective diplomatic engagement,” Neil Turner said in the statement on the two-year mark of the Islamic Emirate’s takeover.
He said that an estimated 15.3 million Afghans are food insecure with acute malnutrition recorded above the emergency threshold in 25 out of 34 provinces adding that more than halfway through the year the humanitarian response plan targeting more than 21 million people is less than 25 percent funded.
“The Afghan people need long-term sustainable solutions to end the humanitarian crisis. This must include efforts to promote greater economic stability including a functioning banking sector and connection to the international financial system. Without progress on the economy, including the resumption of long-term development assistance, sustainable solutions will never be achieved,” Turner said.
NRC urged the authorities in Afghanistan to “uphold their obligations as duty bearers, towards all members of the population, including enabling unhindered and principled humanitarian access and education for women and girls.”
It called on the international community to “sustain humanitarian funding to stabilize the crisis and to step-up diplomatic engagement to find constructive ways forward for Afghanistan as peoples’ lives and futures depend on it.”
Pakistan says communities living along the Afghanistan-Pakistan Durand Line want peace and stability, despite ongoing security concerns in the region.
Speaking during a weekly media briefing, Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said there are no major issues between the people of Afghanistan and Pakistan, adding that residents on both sides of the Durand Line want peaceful relations and greater regional stability.
However, Andrabi claimed that terrorism originating from Afghan territory continues to undermine peace efforts.
He said Islamabad believes militant activity crossing from Afghanistan remains a significant obstacle to improving regional security and bilateral ties.
The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has repeatedly rejected such allegations, maintaining that no militant group is allowed to use Afghan soil to threaten neighboring countries.
Andrabi also said Pakistan remains diplomatically engaged on regional matters involving Afghanistan, Iran, India, and Somalia, stressing that dialogue and diplomacy remain Islamabad’s preferred means of resolving disputes.
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Afghanistan-Gambia ties discussed during Doha meeting
Both sides also exchanged views on strengthening diplomatic engagement and exploring future economic cooperation.
Suhail Shaheen, head of the Islamic Emirate’s embassy in Doha, has met with Omar Jah, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of The Gambia to Qatar, to discuss bilateral relations and areas of mutual interest.
According to a statement from the Afghan embassy in Doha, Jah also oversees Gambian diplomatic affairs related to Afghanistan.
The meeting focused on Afghanistan-Gambia relations, the current security situation in Afghanistan, and potential investment opportunities in the country.
Both sides also exchanged views on strengthening diplomatic engagement and exploring future economic cooperation.
Mahmood Khan Achakzai, a member of Pakistan’s National Assembly and head of the Pakhtunkhwa Awami National Party, has said that if capable statesmen had been in power, people living on both sides of the Durand Line could have moved freely across the line.
Speaking during a podcast interview, Achakzai said that countries with histories of major conflict, including Russia, Germany and the United Kingdom, now maintain far more open borders despite past wars. He said that in many such regions, only a “paper line” remains, with limited border restrictions.
Drawing comparisons with the disputed Durand Line boundary between Afghanistan and Pakistan, Achakzai argued that a similar arrangement could have been possible in South Asia.
“What is the problem here? A Punjabi could dance in Kandahar and a Pashtun could come here. Even if we are not formally one country, we could have effectively functioned like one,” he said.
The Pakistani politician also referred to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan and the later U.S.-led intervention, saying Afghanistan has the right to seek war reparations from those countries to support reconstruction efforts.
Achakzai further criticised the treatment of Pashtuns in Pakistan, alleging that individuals in cities including Lahore and Karachi have faced detention and deportation.
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