Children across Afghanistan are facing a deepening health emergency as the closure of hundreds of clinics and a surge in pediatric illnesses stretch the country’s fragile healthcare system to its limits, international aid organizations warned.

In a new report, Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders or MSF) said hospitals it supports in Helmand, Herat and Balkh Provinces are overwhelmed, with a record number of children being brought to emergency wards amid severe shortages of medicine, beds and medical staff.

At Bost Hospital in Helmand, the number of children under age five seeking emergency care rose from about 54,000 in 2022 to more than 122,000 in 2024. Nearly 14,000 children were admitted in April alone — the highest monthly figure recorded in the last four years.

In Herat, the number of child admissions has jumped 27 percent this year, with the provincial hospital now treating an average of 354 pediatric patients daily in its emergency unit.

The dramatic rise in demand comes amid the suspension of U.S. assistance and other international funding, which has led to the closure or suspension of more than 400 clinics across the country, according to the World Health Organization and the Global Health Cluster. As many as 3.08 million people have been left without access to basic health services.

“This situation is making it increasingly difficult to treat children and will almost certainly lead to higher mortality,” MSF said, urging urgent international action to restore aid and stabilize Afghanistan’s collapsing healthcare infrastructure.