Donors pledge emergency funds for Afghans in face of humanitarian crisis

Afghans wait in front of a bank as they try to withdraw money in Kabul, on Sunday. The UN has expressed deep concerns over a growing humanitarian crisis in the country (Bernat Armangue/AP)

The United Nations drummed up more than 1.2 billion dollars (£870 million) in emergency pledges on Monday for helping 11 million Afghans facing an escalating humanitarian crisis in their homeland and millions more elsewhere in the region.

It came as the United Nations human rights chief voiced concerns about the Taliban’s first steps in establishing power in the beleaguered and impoverished country.