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Afghanistan aid response at breaking point, $1.4b funding gap

Only 53 percent of the $3.06 billion required for the 2024 response had been secured by May 2025, leaving a $1.43 billion gap that threatens to carry over into the current year.

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Afghanistan’s humanitarian crisis is at risk of worsening this year, as aid agencies warn of a severe funding shortfall that could derail efforts to deliver life-saving assistance to millions across the country.

According to the Inter-Cluster Coordination Team (ICCT), only 53 percent of the $3.06 billion required for the 2024 response had been secured by May 2025, leaving a $1.43 billion gap that threatens to carry over into the current year.

The shortfall has already impacted the ability of humanitarian partners to meet basic needs across sectors such as health, water and sanitation (WASH), shelter, and protection.

While 2024 saw 22.4 million people reached with at least one form of assistance—exceeding the 17.3 million target—the response remained heavily skewed toward food aid, with 67 percent of beneficiaries receiving food, often in reduced rations and fewer rounds.

“The scope of need far outpaces the resources available,” said a senior humanitarian official in Kabul. “This level of underfunding is not just a budget issue—it is a direct threat to lives.”

Despite efforts to scale up delivery in Afghanistan’s most vulnerable areas—reaching 129 percent of the planned population in high-severity districts—only 3.1 million people received sustained, multi-sectoral support in any given month. This figure represents just 41 percent of the 7.6 million targeted for intersectoral assistance.

2025 Response at Risk

With the 2025 Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan still underfunded, agencies warn that service delivery may deteriorate further, particularly in critical areas such as healthcare, sanitation, and emergency shelter. Clusters like WASH and Health, each aiming to reach over 10 million people, remain especially underfunded, raising concerns about rising malnutrition rates, disease outbreaks, and preventable deaths.

The funding deficit has been exacerbated by reduced international attention, competing global crises, and operational constraints inside Afghanistan—including restrictions on female aid workers and limited humanitarian access in some regions.

Call for Urgent Action

Humanitarian leaders are calling on donors to urgently step up financial commitments for 2025, warning that without swift action, progress made in 2024 could quickly unravel.

“Millions are depending on this aid to survive,” said an ICCT coordinator. “Without adequate funding, we cannot maintain critical services, let alone expand them.”

As Afghanistan enters yet another year of overlapping crises—including economic collapse, climate-related shocks, and mass displacement—the stakes for bridging the humanitarian funding gap have never been higher.

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Afghanistan says Pakistani military post destroyed near Spin Boldak

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Afghanistan’s Ministry of Defense says a Pakistani military post near Spin Boldak was targeted and destroyed after Pakistani forces opened fire toward Afghanistan.

Ministry spokesperson Enayatullah Khwarazmi said in a post on X that Afghan forces suffered no casualties or damage in the clash.

Khwarazmi also rejected claims made by the Pakistani side about the incident, describing them as “propaganda.”

 

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Mujahid: Pakistan attacking Afghanistan to evade Mecca Pact responsibilities

He warned that the Islamic Emirate would give an “appropriate response” to what he called the Pakistani military regime’s “bullying.”

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Islamic Emirate spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid has accused Pakistan of carrying out attacks on Afghanistan to divert attention from its domestic problems and to evade responsibilities under the “Mecca Pact.”

Speaking at a religious seminary in Kandahar, Mujahid said Pakistan was facing political and economic challenges at home and was using attacks on Afghanistan to shift public attention away from protests and its internal problems.

“Pakistan, by violating the territory of its neighboring Islamic country, wants to divert attention from its failures,” he said.

Mujahid also criticized Pakistan’s political situation, claiming that political space had been restricted and that freedoms guaranteed under the country’s laws were not being allowed.

He said Pakistan’s economic problems had also increased significantly and accused the country of seeking to distract the public from those problems by engaging in conflict with Afghanistan.

Mujahid further accused Pakistan’s military leadership of putting the Pakistani people at risk through what he described as its “false position.”

He warned that the Islamic Emirate would give an “appropriate response” to what he called the Pakistani military regime’s “bullying.”

His remarks followed Pakistani airstrikes on Kandahar, Paktia and Khost provinces on Thursday, which Afghan authorities said killed four civilians.

The strikes came three days after attacks on Kunar and Paktika provinces, in which Afghan authorities said three civilians were killed.

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Kabul rejects U.S. claim that meth seized in Pakistan was of Afghan origin

Balkhi said the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) has imposed an absolute ban on the production, trafficking and use of all types of narcotics in Afghanistan.

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Afghanistan’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Abdul Qahar Balkhi has rejected a U.S. claim that 463 kilograms of synthetic drugs seized in Pakistan were of Afghan origin, calling the attribution “unfounded and politically motivated.”

Balkhi said the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad should investigate the origin of the seized drugs in Pakistan rather than attributing them to Afghanistan.

“The attribution by the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad of the synthetic drugs bound for Sri Lanka and intercepted in Pakistan through joint U.S.-Pakistani efforts as ‘Afghan-origin’ is an unfounded and politically motivated allegation,” Balkhi said.

He said the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) has imposed an absolute ban on the production, trafficking and use of all types of narcotics in Afghanistan.

Balkhi also claimed that following the ban in Afghanistan, the cultivation, production and trafficking of narcotics have increased “on the other side of the Durand Line.”

He further argued that Afghanistan does not have the capacity to produce synthetic drugs and said crossing points along the Durand Line have been completely closed to all movement for nearly a year.

His remarks came after the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad said U.S. and Pakistani anti-narcotics authorities had seized 463 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine worth an estimated $21 million and bound for Sri Lanka.

The embassy said the operation led to multiple arrests and highlighted ongoing U.S. cooperation and training with Pakistani authorities to disrupt international drug-trafficking networks.

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