More than 13,000 Afghan children, newborns to be exact,
have died of hunger, have died of malnutrition.
As a result of the Biden administration deciding to seize
the assets of the Afghan central bank.
This has been a complete utter disaster for the Afghan people.
It makes absolutely no sense for Biden to continue on with this.
But nonetheless, despite the number of deaths as a result, this policy continues.
Now this is based on a new report that was released by Human Rights Watch and
here's what we've learned through that report.
With 95% of the country unable to access sufficient food due to
the currency crisis.
Human Rights Watch reported that 13,000 newborn babies have
died of malnutrition and hunger-related diseases since January,
not january of last year, january of this year.
Okay, it's March, 13,000 newborn babies in Afghanistan have died.
Human rights watch is warning that time is running out to address hunger in
the impoverished country.
Now, the country is grappling with currency shortages.
As a result of the United States freezing the central bank in Afghanistan.
And what did they do?
Well, our government decided to seize $9 billion central bank in Afghanistan.
According to the American prospect, an excellent report by Rryan Cooper.
The banking system has ceased to function.
Businesses can't find credit and have resorted to mass bankruptcies and layoffs.
People can't get enough cash.
The country can't afford necessary imports.
And the value of the currency is collapsing, and
there's a huge problem because the way the economy works has been completely
destroyed single handedly by the United States seizing these assets.
And the argument here is, well, the Taliban took over and so
as a result, we're gonna seize the assets and we're going to implement sanctions.
Because we're not in any way going to support the current government of
Afghanistan, because we don't want to do any type of business or
provide any type of support to the Taliban.
But understand what that means for the Afghan people,
which they've done nothing wrong whatsoever.
Innocent people,
innocent civilians who are already brutalized by US foreign policy.
Are now experiencing insult to injury, with their economy collapsing
based on what we're doing here, what our government is doing.
Ryan Cooper continues to write in the American prospect.
The main problem is the shattering recession and currency crisis that
has crushed the afghan economy since American troops withdrew.
Occupating spending accounted for 40% of the country's GDP and
three quarters of its government budget.
Most afghans can't afford food that would otherwise be readily available.
Now, doctors without borders is overwhelmed.
They're trying to help in every way they can, but
it's incredibly difficult to do so.
Especially based on the sheer numbers of people who are suffering from malnutrition
as we speak.
One in every five children, by the way,
one in every five children admitted to critical care is dying.
And the situation at the hospital has been made worse in
recent weeks by the spread of the highly contagious measles disease.
That damages the body's immune system a deadly blow for
babies already suffering from malnutrition.
Why are we allowing babies to suffer any type of consequence right now?
What is the reasoning behind it?
And so the Biden administration has received some backlash on this?
Because who are we to seize $9 billion dollars in assets from
a sovereign country.
Especially after we engaged in a war that lasted decades,
spent $3 trillion dollars and accomplished absolutely nothing.
Why we destroyed that country?
Why would we continue destroying it by seizing these assets?
Well, apparently the Biden administration decided, okay, look, it appears that
people are really suffering in Afghanistan-based on our actions.
So why don't we provide some humanitarian aid?
Why don't we take some portion of the $9 billion that doesn't belong to us, belongs
to Afghanistan and just give it back to them in the form of humanitarian aid?
But there are problems with that.
So as common dreams rights, after spending months sitting on more than $9 billion,
it sees from the Central Bank last summer, after the Taliban took over Afghanistan.
The Biden administration last month announced it would commit $3.5
billion dollars to unspecified humanitarian efforts, $3.5 billion.
First of all, why not return all the money that you seized from a sovereign country,
again let me repeat.
But more importantly, is that humanitarian aid going to actually get to
the right people when you consider that there are sanctions in place as well.
And the sanctions dissuade international banks from doing any
business with humanitarian organizations that would do the work in Afghanistan.
They're worried, hey, what if we go against us sanctions, what if we get
penalized in some way reprimanded in some way by the US government for
doing this business?
So you have to take those sanctions into account as well.
And what about the rest of the money?
What is Biden doing with the rest of that $9 billion dollars that was seized from
Afghanistan?
Well, let's watch this video to give you a little more of an explanation.
>> The Taliban were in power in Afghanistan when the 911 attacks happened.
As you know, and they had played host to al Qaeda and
Al Qaeda was the organization, the group that planned and executed the 911 attacks.
Nothing to do with ordinary Afghan people.
But the money that President Biden has decided is to be split between
giving it to as compensation to the 911 victim's families.
And humanitarian relief in Afghanistan itself,
it's using the money that really belongs to Afghan people.
Now, if you're in Afghan and you go to the bank anywhere in the world,
including in Afghanistan.
And you put your ATM in the wall as we do,
your money won't come out because they're the frozen assets.
And so there is a lot of anger and
disappointment that what President Biden has decided to do is co opt.
And in the words of some people,
I've been speaking to steal their money and leave them as destitute as
they have been since the country fell to the taliban last August.
>> So Biden takes half that money and says that he's gonna give it to the families
of victims of 911, even though many of those families have come out and
said no, this is wrong, don't do this.
But he's decided to do it anyway.
It's fascinating because we still have very nice relations with Saudi Arabia, and
there's never any critique or criticism coming from the United States government,
whether it's a democrat or Republican sitting in the White House.
In regard to Saudi Arabia's role in what happened on 911.
No conversation about that whatsoever.
In fact, our relationship with Saudi Arabia is so
friendly that we will go to war on their behalf.
We will assist them in a war in Yemen, where you have,
would you look at that more innocent children dying of famine, dying of hunger.
And when you take a look at stories like this and
you compare it to the way both the corporate media and the United States and
the way mainstream democrats, corporate democrats.
Just respond to Ukraine, just compare what they're doing in these countries
how little attention it gets and compare it to the response to Ukraine.
Wouldn't it be amazing if we were humanitarian
minded when it came to every country,
not just countries that we cherry pick as wanting to help.
You see story after story humanizing the Ukrainian people and
that's the right way to cover what's happening to them.
But you rarely see stories about Yemen.
You rarely see stories about what's happening to civilians in Afghanistan.
And it's just wrong, it's just it is it's just wrong.
And the other thing I wanna bring up is how we haven't
heard a peep from people like George W Bush.
Who was really disappointed that the United States was withdrawing troops from
Afghanistan because he was concerned about afghan women.
What about the treatment of Afghan women?
Are we really gonna pull out?
Well now afghan women are starving, their newborn babies are dying.
Not a peep, because apparently being concerned about civilians
only matters to government officials when you can sell weapons.
When you can ensure that some profit will be distributed over to
private defense contractors.
It's just wrong, it's gross.
It needs to be called out.
I get that this isn't the top news story of the day, but
I wanted to make sure you guys knew about it.