Nurse sets up fundraiser to save animals affected by war in Afghanistan

A former British nurse is planing a fundraising event at a hospital to save animals affected by the war in Afghanistan and Ukraine.

Natalie Elves will be selling home-baked cakes and treats at the Johnson Community Hospital in Pinchbeck, to raise money for Nowzad Charity, which was established in 2007 in Kabul to care for animals suffering the fallout of war.

The news was reported by UK-based Iliffe Media stating that the former nurse became interested in saving animals from Afghanistan when she heard about Pen Farthing’s Operation Ark during the Afghanistan evacuation in August 2021.

Operation Ark was a rescue mission by the Nowzad charity to bring 94 dogs and 68 cats as well as their working staff in Kabul to safety amid a chaotic US withdrawal.

Soon after the success of Operation Ark, Elves contacted the Pen Farthing for supporting their cause.

“When it was out on the news, Pen Farthing was getting animals out of Afghanistan in August 2021 and, like a lot of people, I followed that story and was really touched,” Elves told Iliffe Media.

She stated that animals are affected by wars in Afghanistan and Ukraine, often being left homeless and without food or medical treatment.

The former nurse has also garnered some of her nursing colleagues who would help her at the fundraiser and will host a raffle during the event where people can bag themselves a prize.

Elves told Iliffe Media if next week’s fundraising event is successful, she will do another one.

When the Taliban swept across Kabul in August 2021, the US and its allies managed to evacuate over 120,000 people to safety, but tens of thousands of others were left behind, including those who had assisted the US over the past two decades.