Over 50 Afghan children contract unknown disease: Report
Jul 06, 2022
Kabul [Afghanistan], July 6 : More than 50 children in Afghanistan's southern Zabul province have contracted an unknown disease, according to local media.
The disease which is mainly found in Siori region, carries symptoms similar to cholera, Khaama Press reported.
Abdul Hakim Hakimi, the Taliban's head of the public health department in Zabul, said that a mobile medical team has been sent to the province to examine the disease.
Meanwhile, several people in the province have been infected with cholera.
Cholera is a highly infectious disease caused by consuming food or drinking water having certain bacteria. It causes severe diarrhoea and vomiting, which causes dehydration and can lead to death within a few hours if left untreated.
According to the World Health Organisation, "Cholera remains a global threat to public health and is an indicator of inequity and lack of social development."
The spread of cholera had earlier threatened the Afghan people who continued to deal with the aftermath of the recent 5.9-magnitude earthquake in Afghanistan, and now the unknown disease has also become a concern.
Afghanistan is also grappling with a serious humanitarian crisis as according to international assessments, the country now has the highest number of people in emergency food insecurity in the world, with more than 23 million in need of assistance, and approximately 95 per cent of the population having insufficient food consumption.
Notably, the situation of human rights in Afghanistan has worsened since the collapse of the Afghan government and the Taliban's return to power in August last year. Although the fighting in the country has ended, serious human rights violations continue unabated, especially against women and minorities.
As a result of this, women and girls in Afghanistan are facing a human rights crisis, deprived of the fundamental rights to non-discrimination, education, work, public participation, and health.
Besides this, the continuously soaring prices of food products in the country have emerged as a new challenge for Afghans. In a short span of fewer than three months, food prices have almost doubled, reported Khaama Press.
