UN says basic services in Afghanistan are collapsing

Afghanistan is facing the collapse of basic services, and food and other aid is about to run out, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said on Tuesday.

OCHA spokesperson Jens Laerke told a UN briefing in Geneva that millions of Afghans were in need of food aid and health assistance, urging donors to give more ahead of an international aid conference for Afghanistan on Sept 13.

The agency has released a flash appeal for around US$600 million to...