https://arab.news/gw4jq
- Country鈥檚 economy is teetering on the brink of collapse after international money stopped coming into Afghanistan
KABUL: Demonstrators in Afghanistan鈥檚 capital Saturday condemned President Joe Biden鈥檚 order freeing up $3.5 billion in Afghan assets held in the US for families of America鈥檚 9/11 victims 鈥� saying the money belongs to Afghans.
Protesters who gathered outside Kabul鈥檚 grand Eid Gah Mosque asked America for financial compensation for the tens of thousands of Afghans killed during the last 20 years of war in Afghanistan.
Biden鈥檚 order, signed on Friday, allocates another $3.5 billion in Afghan assets for humanitarian aid to a trust fund to be managed by the UN to provide aid to Afghans.
The country鈥檚 economy is teetering on the brink of collapse after international money stopped coming into Afghanistan with the arrival in mid-August of the Taliban.
Torek Farhadi, a financial adviser to Afghanistan鈥檚 former US-backed government, questioned the UN managing Afghan Central Bank reserves.
He said those funds are not meant for humanitarian aid but 鈥渢o back up the country鈥檚 currency, help in monetary policy and manage the country鈥檚 balance of payment.鈥�
He also questioned the legality of Biden鈥檚 order.
鈥淭hese reserves belong to the people of Afghanistan, not the Taliban ... Biden鈥檚 decision is one-sided and does not match with international law,鈥� said Farhadi. 鈥淣o other country on Earth makes such confiscation decisions about another country鈥檚 reserves.鈥�
Afghanistan has about $9 billion in assets overseas, including the $7 billion in the US. The rest is mostly in Germany, the UAE and Switzerland.
鈥淲hat about our Afghan people who gave many sacrifices and thousands of losses of lives?鈥� asked the demonstration鈥檚 organizer, Abdul Rahman, a civil society activist.
Rahman said he planned to organize more demonstrations across the capital to protest Biden鈥檚 order. 鈥淭his money belongs to the people of Afghanistan, not to the United States. This is the right of Afghans,鈥� he said.
Misspelled placards in English accused the US of being cruel and of stealing the money of Afghans.
Taliban political spokesman Mohammad Naeem accused the Biden administration in a tweet late Friday of showing 鈥渢he lowest level of humanity ... of a country and a nation.鈥�
Biden鈥檚 Friday order generated a social media storm with Twitter saying #USA_stole_money_from_afghan was trending among Afghans. Tweets repeatedly pointed out that the 9/11 hijackers were not Afghans.
Obaidullah Baheer, a lecturer at the American University in Afghanistan and a social activist, tweeted: 鈥淟et鈥檚 remind the world that #AfghansDidntCommit911 and that #BidenStealingAfgMoney!鈥�
Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden was brought to Afghanistan by Afghan warlords after being expelled from Sudan in 1996. Those same warlords would later ally with the US-led coalition to oust the Taliban in 2001. However, it was Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar who refused to hand over bin Laden to the US after the devastating 9/11 attacks that killed thousands.
Still, some analysts took to Twitter to question Biden鈥檚 order.
Michael Kugelman, deputy director of the Asia Program at the US-based Wilson Center, called Biden鈥檚 order to divert $3.5 billion away from Afghanistan 鈥渉eartless.鈥�
鈥淚t鈥檚 great that $3.5B in new humanitarian aid for Afghanistan has been freed up. But to take another $3.5B that belongs to the Afghan people, and divert it elsewhere 鈥� that is misguided and quite frankly heartless,鈥� he tweeted.
Kugelman also said the opposition to Biden鈥檚 order crossed Afghanistan鈥檚 wide political divide.
鈥淚 can鈥檛 remember the last time so many people of such vastly different worldviews were so united over a US policy decision on Afghanistan,鈥� he tweeted.