Desperation and hunger are pushing Afghan families in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan toward devastating decisions, with residents of Ghor province reportedly selling their own children to pay for food, medicine and survival expenses as poverty and unemployment spiral further out of control.
According to a report by foreign media, several families in the province described scenes of extreme hardship, where the absence of work, collapsing healthcare and deepening debt have left parents trapped between starvation and impossible choices.
One resident, Saeed Ahmad, said he was forced to sell his five-year-old daughter after she developed serious medical complications, including appendicitis and a liver cyst. Unable to afford treatment costs, he reportedly agreed to hand the child over to relatives in exchange for financial assistance that paid for her surgery.
“If I had money, I would never have taken this decision,” he said, adding that he feared his daughter would die without medical treatment.
The report further described worsening economic conditions in Chaghcharan, the provincial capital of Ghor, where unemployed laborers reportedly gather daily at roadside intersections hoping to secure temporary work. Many return home empty-handed, unable to feed their families.
Another resident, identified as Abdul Rashid Azimi, reportedly said he was prepared to sell his seven-year-old twin daughters because of crushing poverty and debt. Family members described surviving on bread and hot water while children scavenged garbage for fuel and worked polishing shoes in the streets.
The report also highlighted a disturbing rise in child deaths linked to hunger, malnutrition and lack of medical care. Residents and hospital workers claimed infant fatalities have become increasingly common as Afghanistan’s healthcare infrastructure continues to deteriorate under mounting economic pressure.
A nurse at a provincial hospital reportedly said newborn deaths now occur so frequently that medical staff have become emotionally numb to the tragedy.
Foreign media, citing United Nations estimates, reported that nearly three out of every four people in Afghanistan are currently unable to meet basic daily needs, including food and healthcare. Aid agencies have repeatedly warned that shrinking international assistance, widespread unemployment and restrictions imposed under Taliban rule have accelerated the humanitarian collapse.
The Taliban administration, however, blamed the crisis on the legacy of the previous war economy and rejected claims that restrictions on women contributed to declining foreign aid and donor disengagement.
