Update: Catch up on what’s happening in Afghanistan

Remember the Taliban takeover in Afghanistan?

Before Russia invaded Ukraine, the conflict in this Islamic nation consumed the news. It’s pretty much all you heard about. The Russia-Ukraine war may have taken the spotlight, but please don’t forget about displaced Afghan families still struggling to survive.

If anything, their needs have gotten worse, and they need your help now more than ever.

Here’s an updated look at what’s happening in Afghanistan:

Greater restrictions on women

Since the Taliban gained control of Afghanistan last August, the number of displaced Afghans has continued to grow. “Some 3.4 million people are internally displaced due to conflict,” one U.N. official said.

These people are trapped within their own country and living under horrible conditions — especially women.

Women were initially restricted from working and forced to wear head coverings, but now they are also forbidden from flying without a male chaperone. Women’s sports are banned. And many public spaces are now segregated, requiring women to visit on different days.

Recently, the Taliban promised that girls over 12 would finally be allowed to return to school. But it was an empty promise. Back in March, teenage girls throughout Afghanistan eagerly put on their uniforms and showed up at school for the first time in seven months — only to have their dreams crushed.

The Taliban went back on their word, which means Afghan girls still aren’t allowed to finish their education.

A growing hunger crisis

The fact that so many women are jobless has only added to Afghanistan’s hunger crisis. With little to no income, families can’t afford the rising cost of food. That’s why hospitals are filled with so many malnourished children.

In fact, the U.N. estimates that 95 percent of Afghans aren’t getting enough to eat.

Afghanistan was already facing drought before the Taliban takeover, and now with so many people displaced, fields have gone unattended. Harvests are low, which means families will endure another year of food scarcity.

“We want to be strong, but we will need a lot of help,” one Afghan refugee said. “Don’t forget us.”

No relief for refugees on the run

Some Afghans who have chosen to flee the country have found that they’ve just traded one disaster for another.

Approximately 1 million Afghans have escaped into Iran since last August. Unfortunately, Iran’s economy is struggling as well. Iranian employers often can’t afford to pay Afghan refugees, and more than 250,000 have already been deported this year alone, forcing displaced families to return to Afghanistan.

Refugees still living in Iran are struggling to find the peaceful life they’d hoped for. Many are still drowning in poverty, and others face extreme hostility now that tensions between the two countries are high.

How you can help

There seems to be little relief for displaced Afghan families … but YOU can help change that.

One way you can do that is by giving. These families have fled their homes, and many are now hiding from the Taliban without access to food, clean water, medical care, or shelter.

For just $35, you can provide a week’s worth of these essentials for a displaced person in Afghanistan or another high-conflict area. Your gift will show them God’s love and remind them that they aren’t forgotten.

The other way you can help is by remembering Afghanistan in your prayers. After nine months of suffering, many Afghans are starting to lose hope. With Afghanistan no longer making headlines, they feel forgotten. Please continue to pray for Afghan refugees trying to survive.

Afghanistan may no longer be in the news every day, but its people are still struggling. Families are still torn apart. Children are still starving.

Will you help them?

Your $35 gift could be the difference between life and death for a refugee in need. Please give today.

Every $35 helps a refugee