UN provided food assistance to more than 9 million Afghans since Taliban takeover

New York [US], January 18 : The United Nations (UN) had scaled up food assistance in Afghanistan after the Taliban takeover in mid-August.
On Monday, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that UN humanitarians and partners have provided food assistance to more than 9 million Afghans, reported Xinhua.
Humanitarians have since September 2021 provided 9.4 million people with food assistance and reached over 145,600 children with community-based education activities.
They have also provided more than 1.6 million people with primary and secondary health care and treated more than 275,000 children under 5 for acute malnutrition, said OCHA.
In addition, over 550,000 people have been provided with water and sanitation hygiene assistance, including through hygiene promotion and hygiene kits, it said.
Civilian casualties due to improvised explosive devices and unexploded ordnance (UXO) continue to be reported, noted the office, reported Xinhua.
On Friday, two children were reportedly killed when a UXO was accidentally detonated by a group of children playing in Helmand Province.
On Sunday, two children were reportedly injured by a UXO detonation in Nangarhar Province, said OCHA.
The UN Mine Action Service on Wednesday carried out mine clearance operations and provided Explosive Ordnance Risk Education in villages in Lalpur District of Nangarhar Province, reported Xinhua.
In addition, mine clearance operations are ongoing in Pachiragam and Chaparhar districts of the same province, it said.