KABUL (SW) – Hundreds of protesters took to the streets in Kabul on Wednesday demanded the US to unfreeze Afghanistan’s state reserves.
About five months after the US closed Afghanistan’s foreign exchange reserves, a number of Kabul residents once again demanded the release of the money by the US. A number of residents of the capital, holding separate protest rallies today, said that the closure of these assets by the United States will lead to an escalation of the crisis in the country.
Protesters said Afghans are facing more poverty and unemployment than ever before, and this has led to an unprecedented increase in their migration.
“The United Nations and the World Bank, as the direct culprits, must find a solution to the crisis in Afghanistan and convince the United States that keeping money frozen is oppression of Afghans and its dangers to all,” said Sharifa, one of the protesters.
Protesters warned that if the country’s foreign exchange reserves are not released, the economic situation will worsen and citizens’ need for money and humanitarian aid will increase.
With the rise to power of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, the United States has frozen more than $ 9 billion in assets of the country’s central bank, and more than four months later, its fate is still unknown. The release of the money is a complex issue, US officials have said.
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