Meghan Markle, Prince Harry on Afghanistan Crisis, Haiti Earthquake (FILE)
Washington:
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have spoken out about the Taliban taking power in Afghanistan, as well as disaster-ravaged Haiti.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex posted a joint statement on their Archewell Foundation website encouraging followers to unite and support organizations that are “doing critical work” to help those in need.
They wrote: “The world is exceptionally vulnerable right now. While we all feel the many layers of pain from the situation in Afghanistan, we are speechless. As we all look at the growing humanitarian disaster in Haiti, and the threat that “As this worsens after last weekend’s earthquake, we are heartbroken. And as we all witness the ongoing global health crisis, exacerbated by new variants and constant misinformation, we fear.”
The royals further shared: “When a person or community suffers, a part of each of us does so to them, whether we realize it or not. And while we are not meant to live in a state of suffering, we are as humans, are conditioned to accept it. It’s easy to feel powerless, but we can put our values into action — together.”
“For starters, we encourage you to join us in supporting a number of organizations that are doing critical work. We also urge those in positions of global influence to make rapid progress with the humanitarian dialogues expected to be completed this fall. take place at multilateral meetings such as the UN General Assembly and the G20 Leaders’ Summit,” the pair continued.
“As an international community, it is the decisions we make now – to alleviate the suffering of those we know and may never meet – that will prove our humanity,” the Duke and Duchess concluded their statement.
The news comes after Harry recently made a joint statement with Dominic Reid, the CEO of his Invictus Games. The 36-year-old previously served in the British Army for ten years, including two deployments in Afghanistan.
In it, they call on the international community, especially those who have served or whose relatives have served in the country, to join hands as emotions flare over the Taliban takeover.
The Duke of Sussex founded the Invictus Games in 2014 in an effort to use athletics and competition to inspire servicemen to recover both physically and mentally from injuries sustained in combat.
The Taliban invaded several cities in the country in recent weeks, culminating in the weekend takeover of the capital Kabul. The fall of the city led to the collapse of the government as US forces continued their planned withdrawal.
Separately, Tropical Storm Grace also swept across Haiti with torrential rain just days after a powerful earthquake ravaged the impoverished Caribbean nation, adding to the misery of thousands who lost loved ones, suffered injuries or were left homeless, forcing overwhelmed hospitals and rescue workers to hurry. to trade .
Heavy rain and high winds slammed into the southwestern part of the country overnight, hardest hit by Saturday’s earthquake, and officials warned that rainfall could reach 15 inches in some areas before the storm moved on. Port-au-Prince, the capital, also saw heavy rainfall. Grace regained tropical storm status after falling to the level of a tropical depression.
The storm arrived on the same day that the country’s Civil Protection Agency increased the earthquake’s death toll to 1,419 and injuries to 6,000, many of whom had to wait for medical help lying outside in the wilting heat.
According to Fox News, officials have said the 7.2 magnitude earthquake destroyed more than 7,000 homes and damaged nearly 5,000, leaving about 30,000 families homeless. Hospitals, schools, offices and churches were also destroyed or heavily damaged.
The earthquake nearly destroyed several cities in the latest disaster to hit the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. Haitians have already struggled with the COVID pandemic, gang violence, rising poverty and the July 7 assassination of President Jovenel Moise.
