The US government confiscated seven billion dollars (around 6.1 billion euros) from the Afghan central bank that are stored in the United States.

While half of the money will benefit the suffering Afghan population, the other half will be withheld for relatives of victims of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the White House announced on Friday.

The money will initially be secured in an account at the Central Bank of New York.

US President Joe Biden signed a corresponding decree on Friday.

The confiscation of another state's assets is a highly unusual move.

Money out of the hands of the Taliban

"The administration will seek to facilitate access to $3.5 billion of these funds for the Afghan people and for Afghanistan's future," the White House said.

The money should therefore reach the Afghan population directly and not "fall into the hands of the Taliban".

The Islamists regained power in Afghanistan last August amid the US and its allies' troop withdrawal.

The humanitarian crisis in the country has worsened drastically since then, with millions of people at risk of starvation, according to the UN.

The Afghan central bank's money stored in the United States was initially frozen after the Taliban took power.

Now the Biden government has taken steps to enable the billions to be used.

The White House said more than $3.5 billion of the frozen central bank funds would remain in the US and be reserved for "US victims of terrorism" who are seeking damages in court.

"Many US victims of terrorism, including family members of victims who died in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, have made claims against the Taliban and are claiming funds from the Afghan central bank in federal courts."

Around 3,000 people were killed in the attacks on the Word Trade Center in New York and the US Department of Defense in Washington.

The Taliban, who were ruling Afghanistan at the time, had given shelter to the Al-Qaeda terrorist network responsible for the attacks.