Hundreds of people took to the streets of Kabul to protest the closure of banks and currency exchange offices

Several hundred people took to the streets of the Afghan capital on Saturday to protest the closure of banks and currency exchange offices. informs Khaama Press.

Although the Taliban announced Thursday that all financial institutions will reopen since Saturday following their seizure of power, many employees are afraid to return to their duties. Almost all financial institutions in Afghanistan, including the central bank, remain closed, and millions of people in the country are denied access to their bank accounts, and employers do not pay salaries to them.

Bank owners also say they cannot resume operations because Afghanistan’s central bank, De Afghanistan Bank, is not working.

This week, experts from the UN World Food Program (WFP) said that “hell on earth” will come in Afghanistan over the coming months if the economic situation continues to deteriorate and the world does not take measures to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe. “The perfect storm is looming due to several years of drought, hostilities, and an economic crisis exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic,” said WFP Director David Beasley. “The number of people facing hunger has grown to 14 million.” This is almost 38% of the population of Afghanistan.

On August 17, the Khaama Press agency reported that a group of women went to a protest in Kabul demanding to allocate places for the fairer sex in the future government of Afghanistan. Prior to this, a youth demonstration was held in Kunar province demanding to keep the flag of the former Afghan government, wrote “New Newspaper”.

Similar demonstrations in Jalalabad and Asadabad were suppressed by the Taliban with the use of firearms. Several protesters were killed in the shooting. On the victims in Asadabad, the capital of Kunar province, reported Reuters agency citing an eyewitness.