At least 2,205 people have died in two earthquakes that have hit Afghanistan since the weekend, said the country’s deputy deputy spokesman in the country in an X post on Thursday.
The latest data from the Taliban authorities make this earthquake the most lethal in the country’s history.
According to the Assistant Government Deputy spokesman, Hamdullah Fitrat, the number of injured also rose, totaling almost 4,000 people, while the number of destroyed houses exceeds 7,000. Almost all fatal victims were the mountainous villages of Kunar province, where landlies and rock falls continue to cause victims and make it difficult for rescue teams to access. The number of dead can increase further as “hundreds of bodies were found in destroyed homes” during “ongoing search and rescue operations,” the same spokesman warned.
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The last balance of seismic shock, released on Wednesday (3) by the government, reported about 1,460 dead and 3,400 injured.
The magnitude of the earthquake reached 6.0 on the Richter scale, which represents a strong earthquake, and was followed by six other shakes, of which at least two had a magnitude of 5.2. On Tuesday, a new 5.2 magnitude shake hit the east of the country.
Survivors
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The World Health Organization (WHO) warned that the likelies of finding survivors are “decreasing rapidly,” noting that “the rains have worsened” the situation, while the Taliban authorities admitted that they will not be able to deal with the situation alone.
The WHO, which warned of the risk of epidemics, has launched a new appeal for $ 4 million to face the “immense needs” after the earthquake, while the UN has released $ 5 million ($ 27 million).
However, both UN and other humanitarian aid organizations have warned of the difficulties in giving more support since, since the beginning of the year, they have been forced to reduce assistance to Afghan due to cuts in international aid.
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The catastrophe hit the country when Afghanistan was already fighting the devastation of four decades of war, which placed the health system very close to the rupture, and with a severe economic crisis, aggravated by international sanctions imposed following the power of the talibans in 2021.
(with Reuters and Lusa Agency)
