Afghans Who Were Forgotten
When the US withdrew its forces from Afghanistan, it was clear that there was little hope that Washington and its European allies would still be interested in providing aid to the impoverished nation, especially since it had been seized by an adversary they had fought for two decades. Despite claims that famine and poverty were causing parents to sell their kids or that men were buying and selling their kidneys to feed their loved ones, warnings from the UN and other assistance organizations of a humanitarian catastrophe went largely unheeded. Despite pledges, very little aid—certainly not enough to feed hungry infants or prevent hunger—arrived. The Afghan Taliban had to agree to the world demand for a broadly inclusive administration, women's education, and respect for human rights before receiving aid. There was little chance of assistance given the Taliban's obstinacy, but the Russian invasion of Ukraine seemed to have completely diverted attention awa