Afghanistan earthquake death toll surpasses 1,400

More than 1,400 people have been confirmed dead and over 3,000 injured after a powerful earthquake struck eastern Afghanistan over the weekend, the Taliban government reported Tuesday. The 6.0-magnitude quake, which struck late Sunday, has devastated remote areas in mountainous provinces bordering Pakistan.

The hardest-hit area is Kunar province, where the death toll reached 1,411, with 3,124 injured, according to Zabihullah Mujahid, Taliban’s chief spokesman. Neighboring Nangarhar province reported at least a dozen fatalities and hundreds more injuries.

Rescue teams and villagers are racing against time to find survivors buried under collapsed mud-brick homes. Ehsanullah Ehsan, head of the Kunar Provincial Disaster Management Authority, said many injured people remain trapped in remote villages requiring urgent evacuation.

In the village of Wadir, local resident Obaidullah Stoman described the devastation: “There is only rubble left.” Survivors wrapped the dead, including children, in white shrouds and conducted prayers before burial.

Blocked roads have made some villages inaccessible, hampering relief efforts, the UN migration agency reported.

The US Geological Survey located the earthquake’s epicenter about 27 kilometers (17 miles) from Jalalabad at a shallow depth of 8 kilometers—intensifying the impact on fragile housing.

Afghanistan’s decades-long conflicts and poverty leave it ill-prepared for such disasters. Since the Taliban’s takeover in 2021, foreign aid has dwindled sharply, limiting emergency response capacity.

The United Nations warned the quake could affect “hundreds of thousands,” with Secretary-General Antonio Guterres announcing an initial $5 million in emergency aid and promising further support.

As rescue and relief operations continue, the situation remains dire, with fears the death toll will rise.