Monday, 08 September, 2025
Three powerful aftershocks rocked eastern Afghanistan on Friday, heightening fears of massive casualties and destructions in a region already devastated by earthquakes that have killed about 2,200 people this week.
Rescue operations remain hampered by treacherous mountain terrain, landslides, and harsh weather.
Survivors in quake-stricken Nangarhar and Kunar provinces are scrambling for food, water, medicine, and shelter. The United Nations and aid agencies warn of a looming humanitarian crisis, with the World Health Organization (WHO) urgently appealing for $4 million to sustain life-saving healthcare and disease prevention efforts.
The latest tremor, a 5.4-magnitude quake, struck at a shallow depth of 10 km in the southeast, just hours after a 6.2-magnitude quake shook Nangarhar late Thursday night. Ambulances rushed 13 people to hospitals, though most have since been discharged.
Earlier in the week, a 6.0-magnitude quake on Sunday and a 5.5-magnitude quake on Tuesday reduced villages to rubble, destroying more than 6,700 homes and leaving thousands dead or injured. Entire communities are now living in tents or in the open, too fearful to return to homes made of fragile mud, stone, and timber.
Access to remote villages remains blocked by fallen rocks and landslides, delaying aid delivery. The Taliban administration has confirmed at least 2,205 deaths and 3,640 injuries, while calling urgently for international assistance.
Funding shortages are worsening the crisis. The UN has released $10 million in emergency aid and plans a flash appeal for more, but officials warn that resources are running out fast. The UK has pledged £1 million ($1.3m), while other nations have offered limited support.
Afghanistan, sitting on the fault lines of the Hindu Kush mountains where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates collide, has endured some of the world’s deadliest earthquakes. In 2023, quakes near Herat killed more than 1,400 people, and in 2022, a 5.9-magnitude quake in the east left at least 1,000 dead.
Today, with war, poverty, and dwindling aid deepening the country’s vulnerability, the latest disaster threatens to push millions further into despair.
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Three powerful aftershocks rocked eastern Afghanistan on Friday, heightening fears of massive casualties and destructions in a region already devastated by earthquakes that have killed about 2,200 people this week.
Rescue operations remain hampered by treacherous mountain terrain, landslides, and harsh weather.
Survivors in quake-stricken Nangarhar and Kunar provinces are scrambling for food, water, medicine, and shelter. The United Nations and aid agencies warn of a looming humanitarian crisis, with the World Health Organization (WHO) urgently appealing for $4 million to sustain life-saving healthcare and disease prevention efforts.
The latest tremor, a 5.4-magnitude quake, struck at a shallow depth of 10 km in the southeast, just hours after a 6.2-magnitude quake shook Nangarhar late Thursday night. Ambulances rushed 13 people to hospitals, though most have since been discharged.
Earlier in the week, a 6.0-magnitude quake on Sunday and a 5.5-magnitude quake on Tuesday reduced villages to rubble, destroying more than 6,700 homes and leaving thousands dead or injured. Entire communities are now living in tents or in the open, too fearful to return to homes made of fragile mud, stone, and timber.
Access to remote villages remains blocked by fallen rocks and landslides, delaying aid delivery. The Taliban administration has confirmed at least 2,205 deaths and 3,640 injuries, while calling urgently for international assistance.
Funding shortages are worsening the crisis. The UN has released $10 million in emergency aid and plans a flash appeal for more, but officials warn that resources are running out fast. The UK has pledged £1 million ($1.3m), while other nations have offered limited support.
Afghanistan, sitting on the fault lines of the Hindu Kush mountains where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates collide, has endured some of the world’s deadliest earthquakes. In 2023, quakes near Herat killed more than 1,400 people, and in 2022, a 5.9-magnitude quake in the east left at least 1,000 dead.
Today, with war, poverty, and dwindling aid deepening the country’s vulnerability, the latest disaster threatens to push millions further into despair.
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