UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed his grave concern at the deepening humanitarian and economic crisis in Afghanistan.

In a post on Twitter, he wrote that “the economy of Afghanistan is on a downward spiral."

The economy of Afghanistan is on a downward spiral.

To pull it back from the brink, liquidity must be rapidly injected.

Time is of the essence.

Without action, lives will be lost, and despair and extremism will grow.

— António Guterres (@antonioguterres) January 30, 2022

He added that liquidity must be rapidly injected in order to pull the country back from the brink.

“Time is of the essence. Without action, lives will be lost, and despair and extremism will grow.”

On January 26, he told the Security Council on Wednesday that “the country’s economy is collapsing amid another brutal winter, and daily life has become a frozen hell," stressing that over half of all citizens are facing extreme levels of hunger, and some families have been forced to sell their babies so they can buy food.

The UN Chief has also highlighted that “sanctions and mistrust by the global banking system have frozen nearly $9 billion in central bank assets, and vital systems are starved of much-needed funds.”

Afghanistan has been in financial chaos as the US troops heavily damaged the country's economic and political infrastructure following its two-decade-long invasion before hastily withdrawing in August of last year, leaving the country in a difficult state.

Read More: Is This the Fall of US Strategy in Afghanistan?

Washington has frozen billions of dollars in the country's assets, and aid supplies have been severely hampered. Afghanistan also suffered its worst drought in decades in 2021, leading to unemployment skyrocketing and the current inflation.

Earlier, Guterres also described the situation in Yemen as the worst humanitarian crisis in the world.