Hospitals struggling to save starving babies in Afghanistan | BBC News

Key Concepts

• Child mortality due to hunger and malnutrition
• Measles and other diseases exacerbating malnutrition
• Impact of drought and government policies on aid
• Poverty and lack of access to nutritious food and healthcare
• Desperation and coping mechanisms of families (e.g., using anti-anxiety medication on children)
• Unrecorded deaths and the scale of the crisis

Child Mortality Crisis in Afghanistan

• Scale of the Problem: Hunger and disease are causing unprecedented child deaths across Afghanistan.
• Badakshan Regional Hospital: The hospital is overwhelmed with families seeking treatment for malnourished children.
  • Musla: A 5-month-old baby suffering from measles and malnutrition, whose mother, Karima, reported her condition worsening. Musla died a day after the visit.
  • Zamira and Sana: Zamira, who had already lost one child, brought her 3-month-old daughter, Sana, suffering from malnutrition, acute diarrhea, and a cleft lip. Sana died a week later.
  • Mazan and Mutra: Twins, 18 months old, suffering from measles and malnutrition. Mutra died two days after the visit.
• Unrecorded Deaths: Many child deaths go unregistered, masking the true extent of the crisis.

Causes and Contributing Factors

• Drought: Severe drought conditions exacerbate food insecurity.
• Government Policies: The government's stance on women's rights affects international aid.
• Poverty: Families lack the resources to access nutritious food and healthcare.
• Lack of Support: Families receive little to no support from the government or NGOs.

Impact on Families

• Gulam Muidin and Nazu: A couple in Hat province who lost three babies in the past two years due to hunger. They work breaking walnut shells and receive no support.
  • Gulam Muidin's emotional account: "Can you imagine how painful it's been for me to lose three children? One minute there's a baby in your arms, the next minute they are empty...Watching helplessly as my children cried out of hunger, it felt like my body was erupting in flames. It felt like someone was cutting me into half with a saw from my head to my feet."
• Graveyard Analysis: In a graveyard in Hat province, two out of every three graves are of children, primarily due to hunger and malnutrition. The graveyard is only 2-3 years old.

Desperate Measures and Coping Mechanisms

• Rafula and Hanifeh: One-year-old Rafula is severely malnourished and cannot hold himself up. His mother, Hanifeh, cannot afford to take him to a clinic and feeds him bread soaked in water.
• Satara: Hanifeh turned down a dowry offer for her 7-year-old daughter, Satara, to avoid further hardship.
• Sedation: Hanifeh gives Rafula anti-anxiety medication three times a day to sedate him due to hunger. The cost of one strip of the medication is equivalent to the cost of one piece of bread.
  • Hanifeh's statement: "I feel suffocated and like I should kill my children and myself. I feel so guilty that my children are going hungry and I can't do much."

Conclusion

The report highlights a catastrophic humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, with child mortality rates soaring due to hunger, malnutrition, and disease. The situation is compounded by drought, government policies affecting aid, and widespread poverty. Families are resorting to desperate measures to cope with the crisis, and many deaths go unrecorded, obscuring the true scale of the tragedy. The report serves as a plea for urgent international assistance to address the root causes of the crisis and prevent further loss of life.