Cash Airlifts Planned To Bypass Taliban, Help Afghans: Report
NDTV
The emergency funding, aimed at averting a humanitarian crisis in the face of drought and political upheaval, could see U.S. dollar bills flown into Kabul for distribution via banks in payments of less than $200 directly to the poor - with the Taliban's blessing but without their involvement.
As desperate Afghans resort to selling their belongings to buy food, international officials are preparing to fly in cash for the needy while avoiding financing the Taliban government, according to people familiar with the confidential plans.
Planning for the cash airlifts is going ahead against the background of a rapidly collapsing economy where money is short, although diplomats are still debating whether Western powers can demand that the Taliban make concessions in return, according to internal policy documents seen by Reuters.
The emergency funding, aimed at averting a humanitarian crisis in the face of drought and political upheaval, could see U.S. dollar bills flown into Kabul for distribution via banks in payments of less than $200 directly to the poor - with the Taliban's blessing but without their involvement.
As well as flying in cash to stem the immediate crisis, donor countries want to set up a "humanitarian-plus" trust fund that would pay salaries and keep schools and hospitals open, two senior officials said.
