Unfortunately, we need to act again, now. According to the
United Nations, over 900,000 Afghans are starving to death as
we speak. Another 6.6 million are in danger of dying within the
next few months. When winter arrives in under two weeks, relief
organizations will be unable to get aid to many Afghan refugees.
Please, please call on your country's leadership to do everything
in their power to get aid to the Afghan people NOW. You can do
so very easily at:
http://www.9-11peace.org/aid.php3
There's more information about this potential humanitarian disaster
below:
WHAT WE CAN DO NEXT
The prolonged bombing has worsened the plight of the Afghan
people because aid organizations haven't been able to get food
and medicine into the country. The food dropped by the U.S. is
woefully inadequate for the 7 million Afghans who rely on aid.
With the Northern Alliance's capture of most of Northern Afghanistan,
aid organizations may finally be able to bring large quantities
food and medicine into the country. But unless the U.S. and its
allies facilitate the delivery, hundreds of thousands of people
may die.
It's crucial that world leaders hear from us now. They need
to know that we are counting on them to prevent the imminent starvation
of millions of innocent people, and that this should be one of
the highest priorities for the next few weeks. They need to know
that we don't want to have to explain to our grandchildren why
our countries allowed one of the largest mass starvations in history
to take place. Tell them now:
http://www.9-11peace.org/aid.php3
Some facts about the aid crisis:
- The UN estimates that 7.5 million Afghan refugees rely on
food and medical aid to survive.
- Of these, 900,000 face imminent starvation.
- Nearly 20% of those struggling to survive are children under
5.
- Recent bombing attacks have damaged the warehouses of the
International Red Cross as well as the United Nations World
Food Programme. The agencies' staff, laborers and truckers are
now afraid to load, unload or transport food inside Afghanistan.
- Doctors Without Borders, Oxfam International, and officials
in the UN have all called for a stop in the bombing so that
aid can be delivered before it's too late.
More information about the aid crisis in Afghanistan is available
at the website above.
Thank you. Many lives are at stake, but if we act now, we can
change the face of this conflict.
Sincerely,
Eli Pariser
9-11peace.org
November 14, 2001
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