PRCS, TRC send humanitarian relief to Afghanistan

Islamabad:The Pakistan Red Crescent Society (PRCS), in collaboration with Turkish Red Crescent Society (TRC), Saturday sent a consignment of food packages for 16,000 people in Afghanistan.

The aid was handed over jointly by PRCS and TRC officials to representatives of Afghanistan Red Crescent Society (ARCS) during a simple ceremony at the Torkham border crossing point. PRCS, TRC officials, representatives of ARCS and volunteers attended the ceremony.

The humanitarian aid was delivered to Afghanistan under the joint project of Pakistan and Turkey. Thirty-three tons of food supplies contain food packages with consumable items including red beans, pasta, sugar, rice, cooking oil and chickpeas, etc., for distribution among the affected Afghan population.

In a message on the occasion, PRCS Chairman Abrar ul Haq said, PRCS is serving the suffering humanity to the best of its capability and without any discrimination. He said Pakistan and Turkey have always stood side by side with people in distress. He also paid rich tributes to TRC for their magnanimous support and long-term partnership with PRCS in humanitarian interventions in the last decades. “The TRC has always fulfilled its commitment to support PRCS as a reliable partner in case of any disaster or emergency,” he said.

Abrar said the people of Afghanistan are facing immense challenges due to the crisis and COVID-19. “In Afghanistan, conflict, extreme drought, and pandemic have adversely affected the people, with thousands displaced by the recent conflict, and millions more suffering high levels of acute food shortages,” he said adding that this humanitarian assistance is an expression of solidarity with the vulnerable people of Afghanistan amid these challenging times.

“The quantity of food packs being distributed may not be that huge, but what matters is the demonstration of close relations and brotherhood between the people of Pakistan, Turkey and Afghanistan,” Abrar concluded.