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To Afghanistan where the start of a harsh winter is accelerating the humanitarian crisis there. Since the Taliban’s arrival, and international sanctions, the economy has gone into free fall.

So it's against that backdrop that the United Nations is appealing for 5 billion dollars to meet what it says are the acute needs of 28 million Afghans – 22 million inside Afghanistan, and 6 million who have fled to neighbouring countries.

According to one UN agency, UNICEF, an estimated 3.2 million children under the age of five are expected to suffer from acute malnutrition this coming year and that without urgent action, over 1 million children under the age of 5 are at risk of dying. Newsday spoke to Sam Mort, spokesperson for UNICEF in the Afghan capital, Kabul:

"There's not a parent in the world that exchanges their child for dowry that doesn't experience enormous pain and suffering".

(Photo: Youths enjoy the first snow in Kabul on December 15, 2021. Credit: Mohd Rasfan/AFP)