U.S. Military Operations Push Millions of Afghan Civilians to Brink of Starvation
On World Food Day Human Rights Group Releases Fact Sheet on Food Crisis in Afghanistan
New York, NY –The Center for Economic and Social Rights (CESR), a New York-based human rights organization, today released a fact sheet that details the extent and causes of famine in Afghanistan.
According to Sarah Zaidi, CESR Research Director, “Relief officials on the ground are warning that millions – literally millions – of Afghan civilians will starve to death this winter unless the US military suspends its attacks and allows the UN to re-establish effective food distribution. We are talking about women, children and the poorest of the poor, who have no means to access food in this war zone.”
Afghanistan was experiencing a food crisis even before 11 September – almost 5 million vulnerable civilians depended on emergency supplies trucked in from neighboring countries. US military operations have disrupted this massive international relief effort and created the conditions for a nation-wide famine.
UN agencies now estimate that 7.5 million Afghans need immediate food aid in order to survive the harsh winter that begins in one month. However, large-scale distribution by truck is not possible given the on-going air strikes and the growing chaos inside the country. Millions of civilians have fled their homes in search of safety.
High altitude food drops by the US military – so widely publicized in American media – have met with strong condemnation from international relief agencies. They complain that the food drops cover only a tiny fraction of the needy population and serve mainly “as a propaganda tool.”
Human rights and humanitarian law are established on the fundamental principle that life must be protected at all times, in peace and in war. All nations, all religious, legal, and ethical traditions, and all people of conscience agree that innocents must never be punished for the crimes of the guilty.
“All attacks that result in significant and foreseeable civilian deaths are a grave violation of human rights,” says Roger Normand, CESR Executive Director. “The US government must immediately suspend military operations, support UN relief efforts, and guarantee that its actions in Afghanistan do not result in gross violations of the rights to food and life.”
On World Food Day, the Center for Economic and Social Rights calls upon the US and all other members states of the United Nations to respect the internationally recognized right to be free from hunger and to allow for humanitarian operations to resume immediately in Afghanistan.
For more information on the food crisis in Afghanistan, please see the CESR fact sheets at http://www.cesr.org/Emergency%20Response/afghanfactsheets.htm or contact Sarah Zaidi or Roger Normand.
CONTACT
Sarah Zaidi (718) 237-9145 ×14 szaidi@cesr.org
Roger Normand (718) 237-9145 ×16 rnomand@cesr.org
