KABUL: The Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) of the US government has stated that the war-torn country is currently experiencing a "tsunami of hunger" as a result of the ongoing humanitarian catastrophe and the country's collapsing economy.

SIGAR released its 44th quarterly report to Congress on Thursday, examining the $145.87 billion reconstruction effort in Afghanistan, stating that "record drought, rising food prices, internal displacement," as well as economic breakdown and the collapse of public services, constitute a "humanitarian emergency," according to reports.

Nearly 19 million Afghans endured acute food insecurity in "September and October 2021," according to the findings of Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, a UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) organisation.

"This winter, 22.8 million Afghans will be at risk of death from hunger, with 8.7 million facing near-famine conditions," according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification study.

"According to the World Health Organization and the World Food Programme, 3.2 million Afghan children under the age of five will suffer from acute malnutrition this winter, with one million at risk of death." SIGAR referenced a UN Development Programme (UNDP) report from September 2021, which stated that as a result of the deepening political and economic difficulties, up to 97 percent of Afghanistan's population was at risk of falling into poverty by mid-2022.

At least 13 people killed during US security operation in Syria

100 Pakistani soldiers killed, two military camps destroyed

As gun violence rises across US, Biden announces new initiatives