A STARVING Afghan mum was forced to sell her four-month-old baby so she could save their twin.

       The desperate mum, named Bibi to protect her identity, sold her baby to a childless couple who paid $104 after the food crisis in Afghanistan became dire.

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       Bibi and her husband were forced to give up their newborn son

       The war-torn country is facing its worst famine on record with an increasing number of families forced to make desperate and life-changing decisions in order to survive.

       Earlier this year the crippling drought caused Bibi and her husband to abandon their farm and flee to a nearby city.

       The dad and the eldest-son worked had since worked as labourers until the Taliban took over and left them without a job.

       Four months ago, Bibi gave birth to twins - a boy and a girl.

       But with the two additions to the already large family of six children, Bibi and her husband knew they had to make a hard choice.

       In a tragic turn of events, Bibi and her husband felt they have no choice but to give up one of the twins so they could feed the rest of their family.

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       Speaking to the international charity Save the Children, Bibi said: "We have nothing, so how could I take care of them [both]?

       “I suffered from having to split them up.

       "It was a very difficult [decision], more than you could imagine. It was especially difficult to give the baby away because of poverty."

       Bibi said that a childless couple approached the family and offered them $104 to take their newborn son.

       At first, she refused but after days of seeing her son starve, she decided that giving him away was what was best for him.

       "It was hard," she said.

       "Harder than you can imagine. I gave my child away because of destitution... I was unable to take care of him and I could not afford anything."

       According to Save the Children, more than 97 per cent of Afghans are predicted to sink below the poverty line by mid-2022.

       Unfortunately, Bibi's heartbreaking story isn't the only tale of a desperate Afghan parent selling their child in order to survive.

       In November, a dad was forced to sell his nine-year-old daughter as a child bride so he could buy food for his family.

       Parwana Malik was sold to Qorban, 55, who she described as an “old man” because of his white beard and eyebrows.

       As the man was leading her away, Parwana’s dad Abdul Malik pleaded with him not to hurt his child.

       Abdul broke down in tears as he told Qorban: “This is your bride. Please take care of her. You are responsible now, please don’t beat her,” according to a CNN report.

       Child protection committee is held as Unicef reports girls as young as 20 DAYS are being offered up for marriage in Afghanistan