Gordon Brown: west is sleepwalking into Afghanistan disaster

[superadmin]

The west is “sleepwalking into the biggest humanitarian crisis of our times” in Afghanistan, Gordon Brown has warned, as he called for a support package to save the country from economic and social collapse after the Taliban’s takeover.

Four months after the western-backed government was overthrown following a mass military withdrawal, the former UK prime minister said the case for action was not based only on morals but also “in our self-interest”.

He said more than half the Afghan population was facing extreme hunger, including 1 million children at risk of starving to death, citing International Monetary Fund predictions that the country’s economy would contract by 20-30% in the next year.

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