Natural disaster
New earthquake shakes Afghanistan
Afghan women mourn relatives who died in the earthquakes. photo
© Ebrahim Noroozi/AP/dpa
After one of the worst earthquakes in Afghanistan in decades, hope of getting people out of the rubble is dwindling. Rescuers paint a bleak picture of the disaster areas.
Several earthquakes had already shaken the Afghan border province of Herat near Iran on Saturday morning. According to the US Earthquake Observatory, the two strongest quakes had a magnitude of 6.3. The Ministry of Disaster Relief put the number of deaths on Sunday at more than 2,400, while the UN emergency relief office OCHA spoke of more than 1,000 deaths.
One of the worst earthquakes in decades
Meanwhile, the hope of rescuing survivors is dwindling. Helpers and doctors who rushed to the disaster areas in the west of the country reported a great deal of destruction.
In numerous villages northwest of the provincial capital Herat, houses were leveled by the quake, eyewitnesses said. The Ministry of Disaster Relief put the number of deaths on Sunday at more than 2,400 and another 2,000 were injured. The numbers could not initially be independently verified. It would be one of the worst earthquakes in Afghanistan in decades.
The UN emergency relief office OCHA said there were more than 1,000 dead on Sunday evening, but it is assumed that the number of victims will increase as remote regions are reached. More than 11,000 people were affected by the earthquake. The United Nations released five million dollars (4.7 million euros) in emergency aid on Sunday and announced an imminent appeal for donations after assessing the needs.
Earth shook nine times in just a few hours
On Saturday morning, several earthquakes startled residents of the Afghan border province near Iran. Within just a few hours, the earth shook nine times and more than a dozen villages were largely destroyed. The most affected area was the Sindajan district, northwest of Herat. The military and rescue services rushed to the disaster areas. According to the US Earthquake Observatory USGS, the two strongest quakes had a magnitude of 6.3.
The European Union (EU) assured the affected population of Afghanistan of its full solidarity, as EU chief diplomat Josep Borrell wrote on the short message service X (formerly Twitter). “EU teams have already reached the disaster area to help,” he said, without giving details.
Even 300 kilometers away in neighboring Iran, walls and ceiling lights were shaking on Saturday, as residents of the metropolis of Mashhad said. There, too, the authorities put emergency services on alert and sent teams to the border to examine possible damage.
Country is politically isolated internationally
The quakes bring back memories of the devastating disaster last summer, when more than 1,000 people were killed in an earthquake with a magnitude of 5.9 in the east of the country. After decades of conflict, many villages with simple construction are ill-equipped to deal with earthquakes.
The Taliban have been back in power in Afghanistan for more than two years. The country is politically isolated internationally because of its repressive policies, which primarily discriminate against women and girls. This is also a reason why rescue work is making difficult progress. Severe earthquakes occur again and again in the region, especially in the Hindu Kush, where the Indian and Eurasian plates meet.