Exclusive-Afghan central bank drained dollar stockpile before Kabul fell - document

FILE PHOTO: Men are pictured as Afghanistan's Taliban-controlled central bank seizes a large amount of money in cash and gold from former top government officials, including former vice president Amrullah Saleh, in Afghanistan, in this handout obtained by Reuters on September 15, 2021. Da Afghanistan Bank/Handout via REUTERS

FRANKFURT/MUMBAI (Reuters) - The Afghan central bank ran down most of its U.S. dollar cash reserves in the weeks before the Taliban took control of the country, according to an assessment prepared for Afghanistan's international donors, exacerbating the current economic crisis.

The confidential, two-page brief, written in early September by senior international economic officials, said the country's severe cash shortage began before the Taliban took control of Kabul.