A powerful earthquake of magnitude 6 struck eastern Afghanistan near the Pakistan border late Sunday, killing at least 800 people and injuring about 2,500, Taliban officials confirmed Monday. The shallow quake, which hit mountainous Kunar province hardest, triggered landslides and flooding, hampering rescue efforts as roads were destroyed or blocked by rubble.
Rescuers struggled to reach remote villages, with some accessible only on foot. In Kunar's Nur Gul district, a journey that normally takes two hours to the village of Masood now takes eight, and many villages remain unreached. The death toll is expected to rise, with hundreds unaccounted for and local hospitals overwhelmed.
Rasheed Khan, a cloth merchant from Kunar's Watpur village, said he lost his wife, three children and two brothers. 'It's doomsday for me,' he told reporters. 'I fear thousands still remain trapped under the rubble.' In Masood, nearly every family has lost members, and rescue workers fear up to 250 dead in that village alone.
Afghanistan's defence ministry dispatched 30 doctors and medicine to Kunar, but the Taliban appealed for humanitarian aid, including field hospitals, rescue equipment, shelter, food and clean water. The Red Cross, involved in the rescue, noted repeated aftershocks and challenging remote terrain.
The earthquake comes as Afghanistan's healthcare system, already strained by the withdrawal of foreign aid since the Taliban takeover in 2021, struggles to cope. Homes in the region, primarily made of mud and rocks, were particularly vulnerable. In Laghman province, at least 30 injuries were reported, mostly among women.
