
Reports of splitting Afghan funds with 9/11 victims bring Biden admin under fire
The Biden administration is expected to announce on Friday its decision to split $7 billion in frozen Afghan funds between certain relatives of 9/11 victims and humanitarian aid for Afghanistan, The New York Times reports.
Afghanistan’s central bank had deposited the $7 billion in assets in the Federal Reserve Bank of New York before the Taliban takeover, notes the Times.
News of the administration’s reported decision, however, was not taken lightly online, with many observers weighing in to accuse the White House of stealing from a country on the brink of humanitarian collapse.
The Biden administration delivering on its promise to put human rights at the centre of its foreign policy by seizing billions of dollars from a country on the brink of famine. https://t.co/I7RkpsfPqE
— Richard Hall (@_RichardHall) February 11, 2022
Afghans, who have been oppressed for decades by the Taliban and subjected to a brutal US war and are suffering a deadly humanitarian crisis are paying for a terrorist attacking in which not one hijacker was Afghan and none of the hijackers’ countries have paid or held responsible https://t.co/IKtExg8JuU
— Ayman (@AymanM) February 11, 2022
Let’s not sugarcoat this: The Biden administration is stealing $3.5 billion from starving Afghans to purchase political cover. It’s disgusting and immoral. https://t.co/58oLyor1ny
— Zack Beauchamp (@zackbeauchamp) February 11, 2022
You occupy and bomb a country for twenty years, leave them fragile and starving, then steal thier money? Doesn’t get lower than this folks. https://t.co/elmxFk7B3o
— Yousef Munayyer (@YousefMunayyer) February 11, 2022
As “aid” this won’t work to alleviate the crisis. Their problem is we defunded their central bank and shut down nearly all economic activity. You couldn’t for instance shut down the Federal Reserve and then make things ok by funding some soup kitchens. https://t.co/08KJHBfb0u
— Ryan Grim (@ryangrim) February 11, 2022
These reserves are what gives Afghanistan’s own currency any value. Without them, markets, shops, daily bread – none of it works.By trying to split the difference between domestic political pressures, the Biden admin may chart a worst-case outcome for Afghanistan’s economy. https://t.co/LNmRfO3ItZ
— Andrew Watkins (@and_huh_what) February 11, 2022
I had heard rumblings about this settlement all week, but now it’s actually happened. Experts I’ve spoken with said this is a disastrous decision. https://t.co/dVsqc1NBNA
— Cristina Maza (@CrisLeeMaza) February 11, 2022
“Families of 9/11 victims have been pursuing financial compensation from the Taliban for years,” CNN writes, “and renewed their efforts following the group’s takeover of the country [in 2021] and the subsequent freezing of the Afghan assets.” The White House has been figuring out how to handle the situation for months, having now seemingly landed on this 50/50 split — $3.5 billion for Afghanistan aid, and $3.5 billion for terror victims.
The Biden administration is expected to announce on Friday its decision to split $7 billion in frozen Afghan funds between certain relatives of 9/11 victims and humanitarian aid for Afghanistan, The New York Times reports. Afghanistan’s central bank had deposited the $7 billion in assets in the Federal Reserve Bank of New York before the…
The Biden administration is expected to announce on Friday its decision to split $7 billion in frozen Afghan funds between certain relatives of 9/11 victims and humanitarian aid for Afghanistan, The New York Times reports. Afghanistan’s central bank had deposited the $7 billion in assets in the Federal Reserve Bank of New York before the…