Afghanistan, Sudan, Iran
Today's three stories you should know
Afghanistan
The UN’s World Food Programme (WFP) has admitted that it does not have the resources to respond to a hunger crisis in Afghanistan this winter and that deaths will rise, particularly among children, as a result. Funding for Afghanistan was slashed by several governments after the Taliban returned to power in 2021. The WFP said it was short of more than $460 million to help about six million of the most vulnerable people in the country. “With child malnutrition already at its highest level in decades, and unprecedented reductions in funding for agencies providing essential services, access to treatment is increasingly scarce,” it said.
More from the WFP here.
Sudan
At least 104 people, including 43 children, were killed in drone attacks in Sudan’s Kordofan region since December 4, according to the UN. “I am alarmed by the further intensification in hostilities,” said United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk. He did not specify who was responsible for the attacks but said they had struck a kindergarten, a hospital and a U.N. base. Sudan’s army has been locked in a war with the powerful Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group, which is backed and funded by the United Arab Emirates, for two and a half years, leading to the worst humanitarian crisis in the world.
More from Reuters here.
Iran
Iran’s rial has plunged to a record low of 1.3 million to the U.S. dollar, deepening a currency crisis as the country suffers under the weight of sanctions and regional pressures. The rial’s free fall is pushing up prices for food and other necessities, putting Iranian families under increasing strain. The first hike in fuel prices since an increase in 2019 sparked countrywide protests is likely to compound the situation. Three hundred people were reported killed in those demonstrations. Iran’s economy has been battered for years by Western sanctions, and when U.S. President Donald Trump returned to the White House this year, he revived a “maximum pressure” campaign against Tehran, expanding the sanctions regime.
More from AP here.
Afghanistan has been truly screwed by the rest of the world. Invaded by Soviet Union (>a million killed) and the U.S (hundreds of thousands killed), left to the Taliban and a revolving door ofleaders who don't care about the people (including puppets installed by others), destroyed by sanctions and economic warfare, and reeling from long-term underdevelopment due to all the wars.
Refugees who left the nation have even been forced back to Afghanistan by neighbouring countries. And, on top of everything: earthquakes, natural disasters, and exposure to climate change (warming at twice the global average, despite causing negligible overall emissions).
Utter madness that $1 trillion was spent on a war but the entire world can't cobble together enough to feed the people.
I personally don't believe AGI exists, and I'm doubtful it will exist in the near future, but it's difficult to believe that rule by AGI could be worse than rule by a seemingly endless supply of corrupt, sadistic, demented, amoral sociopathic humans.