U.N. sees massive drop in COVID vaccinations in Afghanistan after Taliban takeover

FILE PHOTO: A hospital worker receives the first dose of AstraZeneca's vaccine against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) at a hospital in Kabul, Afghanistan February 28, 2021. REUTERS/Mohammad Ismail

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - In the first week following the Taliban conquest of Kabul, COVID-19 vaccinations in Afghanistan have dropped by 80%, the U.N. agency UNICEF said, warning that half of the few doses delivered to the country so far are close to expiry.

The Taliban seized control of the Afghan capital on Aug. 15, having already captured most of the country earlier in the month after the United States decided to withdraw military forces after 20 years of war.