Mohammad Daoud Sultanzoy, the Mayor of Kabul, spoke out about the dire state of affairs following the withdrawal of the United States from Afghanistan in an interview with CNBC's The News with Shepard Smith. ".
Sultanzoy stated that millions of people are on the brink of hunger and famine. "Millions are below [the] poverty line."
According to the United Nations Children's Fund, 1 million Afghan children could starve this year. According to the World Health Organization, the country's health system is at risk of "collapse" due to a lack funding that left thousands of health facilities unable to purchase medical supplies or pay staff.
Sultanzoy was elected mayor of Kabul in the year before the Taliban took power. While other politicians of high standing fled Kabul as the capital was being taken over by Taliban fighters, Sultanzoy remained in Kabul.
Shepard Smith was interviewed by Sultanzoy, who said that Afghans have to ask themselves what the past 20-years have done for their country.
"Why are we back where we were twenty years ago after all these years of fighting and 20 years of casualties?" Sultanzoy said.
In October 2001, just weeks after Sept. 11 attacks, the United States began its war on Afghanistan. About 2,500 U.S. military personnel have died in Afghanistan since then. This conflict also claimed the lives more than 100,000 civilians, police officers, and Afghan troops.
Smith was told by the mayor that Afghans don't have the luxury of being mad or to take responsibility for the current state.
Sultanzoy stated that Afghans are currently facing many unknowns. "We don’t know what will happen to the economy, daily affairs of the people, or the liberties of education for girls and women. There are many unknowns and anxieties that we can't ignore.
