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Afghan families still in need of vital support, one year after Herat earthquakes

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Plagued by a severe funding shortfall, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) has warned that with winter rapidly approaching, the outlook for at least 25,000 Afghan families in Herat is bleak as they still lack adequate shelter a year after deadly earthquakes struck the province.

On October 7, 11 and 15 of last year, massive earthquakes hit the province, leaving over 275,000 people in urgent need of assistance.

The three 6.3 magnitude earthquakes devastated 382 villages, resulted in the death of 1,480 people and injured nearly 2,000 others.

Homes, health centers, schools and essential infrastructure were destroyed in an instant, further exacerbating the vulnerability of communities already grappling with the aftermath of decades of conflict and economic hardship.

While assistance was mobilized quickly, the challenges remain significant as many families continue to struggle in the wake of the earthquakes and have found it hard to recover – both psychologically and materially.

One such family is led by Tahmina, a 25-year-old mother from one of the worst-affected villages in Herat.

The earthquakes claimed the lives of fourteen members of her family, including her parents, siblings and younger relatives. Her children remain traumatized by the events, with one unable to laugh or walk since that tragic day.

Tahmina’s story reflects the difficulties faced by countless other Afghan families who were also affected by the earthquakes.

However, a severe funding shortfall is posing major challenges to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), which has helped drive the humanitarian assistance process in Herat and across Afghanistan.

In a report published this week, UNOCHA said Afghanistan’s Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan (HNRP) faces a severe funding shortfall, having received only $961.7 million - 31.4 percent of the $3.06 billion required.

This $2.09 billion funding gap threatens essential aid programmes as humanitarian needs remain acute.

The agency also reported that from July to September, widespread flash floods impacted more than 18,900 people across 14 provinces, damaging homes, livestock and agricultural assets, which are vital resources for food security.

“Additionally, since January 2024, cross-border returns have surged, with over 1.1 million Afghans returning from Iran and Pakistan - 243,000 from Pakistan and 825,000 from Iran - adding further strain on limited resources,” the report read.

UNOCHA stated that the critical funding gap of $2.09 billion includes an urgent $1.09 billion shortfall in healthcare, nutrition, sanitation and shelter sectors.

As a result of this shortfall, 3.7 million people have been left without access to primary and secondary healthcare services, while hundreds of thousands of children and pregnant women are missing essential nutritional support.

Emergency shelter and sanitation resources are also lacking, leaving thousands affected by floods and earthquakes without long-term housing solutions, the report read.

In addition, food assistance has been scaled back, excluding entire districts from critical support and increasing the risk of malnutrition.

UNOCHA in turn appealed to donors to provide timely and consistent funding to sustain humanitarian operations and ensure aid reaches those in greatest need.

“Increased international engagement with Afghan authorities could also facilitate access and support the effective delivery of assistance,” the report read, adding that “without prompt action to address the critical funding gap, Afghanistan’s humanitarian crisis will deepen, leaving millions in precarious and increasingly vulnerable conditions.

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Pakistani politician Rehman says his country cannot afford war with Afghanistan

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Hafiz Naeemur Rehman, leader of Pakistani political party Jamaat-e-Islami, said on Thursday that Pakistan cannot afford war with Afghanistan.

“Afghanistan needs to understand that its matters cannot be addressed without us [Pakistan]," Rehman said on Samaa TV.

“We have come up with the proposal that the JI and other political forces should hold the jirga on the matter,” said Rehman.

“Some of the delegations will visit Afghanistan in the forthcoming days,” he added.

Pakistani officials have repeatedly claimed that attacks in the country are planned in Afghanistan.

The Islamic Emirate, however, has denied the allegations, saying Afghanistan is not responsible for Pakistan's "security failure".

The Pakistani army carried out airstrikes on Barmal district of Afghanistan's Paktika province last month, killing and wounding dozens of people.

The Islamic Emirate retaliated by attacking several points across the Durand Line.

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Biden: History will reflect that withdrawal from Afghanistan was right thing to do

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US President Joe Biden, in his final speech to military before leaving office, defended the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan, saying that history will reflect that it was the right thing to do.

He said the troops "rose to the occasion" when he asked for the war in Afghanistan to end, "evacuating Americans, allies and our Afghan partners, accomplishing the largest airlift in military history and ending a war. The same courage is defined by American service in Afghanistan for over 20 years."

He said he believes "history will reflect that was the right thing to do, but I know, I know, it was hard after decades of losing your brothers and sisters, including [during the] withdrawal. The pain was still real. And it was for me as well. Every day I still carry, every single day."

Biden has been criticized for his handling of the messy Afghanistan withdrawal, when 13 US soldiers were killed at the Kabul airport in August 2021.

He added that six months after American troops withdrew from Afghanistan, "when Russia began its largest war in Europe since World War II, I asked you to help defend Ukraine. You didn't hesitate. You kept Ukraine in the fight, trained Ukrainian soldiers and pilots, troops, bolstered NATO's eastern flank. And, above all, you showed the world America stands up for freedom, stands with our friends."

Meanwhile, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said that in Afghanistan, President Biden ended America's longest war that spanned four presidents and he refused hand it over to one more.

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IEA has provided facilities for industrialists and investors: Baradar

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Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar says the Islamic Emirate has provided land, privileges, and facilities for industrialists and returning investors in industrial zones.

Speaking at a conference in Kabul on Thursday titled “Calls for Investment in Afghanistan”, Baradar said that the law for industrial zones had been signed with an introduction, six chapters, 11 sections, and 67 articles.

"I urge industrialists and investors to transfer their industries and investments to the country so that they can fulfill their responsibility in the development of the country's industry,” said Baradar.

He stated that the IEA has increased customs duties on imported items that are produced domestically and meet the needs of the people, in order to support local production.

Baradar added that all government departments have been instructed to prioritize domestic products in their purchases.

Meanwhile, the acting Minister of Industry and Commerce Nooruddin Azizi also announced at the conference that 160,000 hectares of land has been allocated to industrialists, and 1,200 investors have invested $500 million in various sectors.

Azizi said: “We have around 1,200 companies requesting land, and approximately $500 million is being invested by them in Afghanistan."

According to him, returning industrialists and traders are exempt from customs duties on machinery and equipment imports, and at their request, two-year visas will be issued for their foreign technical workers and engineers.

The acting Minister of Economy Din Mohammad Hanif also said: “If Afghan investors residing abroad bring half of their investment back to the country, Afghanistan will become self-sufficient."

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