KABUL, Afghanistan — A devastating magnitude 6 earthquake has killed more than 800 people and injured at least 2,800, according to authorities, as the war-torn nation grapples with another major natural disaster. The quake, which struck around midnight at a depth of 10 km (six miles), has caused widespread destruction, particularly in the eastern provinces of Kunar and Nangarhar.
Helicopters are being used to evacuate the wounded, who are being airlifted from remote, mountainous regions where mudbrick homes have been reduced to rubble. Afghan soldiers, Taliban security personnel, and local volunteers are working to transport victims to hospitals. The defense ministry confirmed that military rescue teams are fanned out across the affected area, with 40 flights already carrying 420 wounded and dead.
The Taliban administration, already facing a severe humanitarian crisis compounded by a sharp drop in international aid and the return of hundreds of thousands of refugees, is mobilizing its limited resources. Health ministry spokesperson Sharafat Zaman has issued a plea for international assistance, stating, “We need it because here lots of people lost their lives and houses.”
This is the third deadly earthquake to hit Afghanistan since the Taliban took power in 2021. The country’s vulnerability is exacerbated by its location in the Hindu Kush mountain range, where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates converge. The Taliban government’s ability to respond is hindered by a significant decrease in international funding, which has fallen from $3.8 billion in 2022 to an estimated $767 million this year.
Diplomats and aid officials attribute the funding cuts to crises elsewhere in the world and donor frustration with the Taliban’s policies, particularly restrictions on female aid workers. A spokesperson for Afghanistan’s foreign office noted that no foreign governments have yet offered to provide direct support for the rescue or relief work.
The United Nations Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, stated on X that the UN mission in Afghanistan is preparing to assist those in the devastated areas. Humanitarian agencies are working to address what they call a “forgotten crisis,” with the UN estimating that more than half of Afghanistan’s population is in urgent need of humanitarian aid.
