UN agencies warn of humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan

Geneva (dpa) - United Nations agencies on Tuesday warned of a humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan while also revealing that they have received just over a third of urgently needed donations.

The U.N. Children's Fund (UNICEF) also said that every second Afghan child was suffering from malnutrition. In addition, Afghanistan has the world's second highest rate of child mortality -nearly 1,700 for every 100,000 live births.

One in five child deaths are due to diseases preventable by vaccines and only one in ten wells in rural areas could provide fresh water for the population, UNICEF said.

According to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), up to 200,000 refugees had made their way to the Maslakh camp for internally displaced people alone. The camp is in the western Herat region.

The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said civil war and drought had forced some 3.6 million people to flee their homes. In the global army of refugees, Afghans make up the single largest group, the UNHCR said. dpa jda jp ms

AP-NY-07-17-01 0741EDT

Copyright (c) 2001 dpa Deutsche Presse-Agentur GmbH
Received by NewsEdge Insight: 07/17/2001 07:41:38