US watchdog accuses Islamic Emirate of diverting international aid

Afghanistan’s Islamic Emirate is using force and other measures to divert international aid, block minority communities from receiving assistance, and may be colluding with U.N. officials to demand kickbacks, according to a report released Tuesday by the U.S. Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR).

The findings, based on input from nearly 90 current and former U.S. officials, U.N. personnel, and other sources — including Afghans inside the country — allege that the Islamic Emirate exerts control over aid distribution to direct resources toward its preferred recipients rather than donor-designated communities.

SIGAR reported that one Afghan aid worker who exposed the diversion of food aid to a military training camp was later killed, though responsibility for the killing could not be confirmed.

An Islamic Emirate spokesperson, Hamdullah Fitrat, denied the allegations, stating that international aid is distributed independently and that government agencies cooperate to ensure transparency and prevent misuse. The U.N. has not yet commented on the report, and Reuters said it could not independently verify the claims.

The watchdog meanwhile also cited allegations from interviewees that U.N. officials sought bribes from companies and humanitarian groups in exchange for contracts, and that some Islamic Emirate officials may have colluded with U.N. personnel to split illicit proceeds.

According to SIGAR, international donors provided $10.72 billion in aid — including $3.83 billion from the United States — between August 2021, when the Islamic Emirate took power, and April 2025, when the Trump administration ended most U.S. assistance.

The report accuses the Islamic Emirate of using both regulatory authority and coercion to influence which humanitarian groups can operate, directing U.S.-funded aid disproportionately to majority Pashtun areas while marginalising minority communities, and extorting humanitarian workers.

The Islamic Emirate has not yet issued an official response to the report.