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Afghan volunteers and security personnel carry an earthquake victim evacuated by a military helicopter from the Noorgal district of Kunar province, after his arrival for medical assistance in Jalalabad on Sept. 1, 2025. (AFP)Next

Updated 37 sec ago

MODASER ISLAMI

September 01, 2025

• Entire villages wiped out in Kunar province, where at least 800 people were killedThe disaster will further stretch the resources of the South Asian nation
• Rescuers walk for hours to reach the areas as roads are destroyed by landslides

KABUL: Rescuers and dozens of doctors were flown to mountainous villages in eastern Afghanistan on Monday to search for survivors of a powerful earthquake that official reports estimate has killed at least 800 people.

A magnitude 6 earthquake hit the densely populated rural areas of Kunar and Nangarhar provinces near midnight on Sunday, with aftershocks reported until Monday also in neighboring Pakistan.

Afghan government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told reporters in Kabul that at least 812 people — 800 in Kunar and 12 in Nangarhar — have been killed and nearly 3,000 injured. Most of the casualties were reported in Kunar’s Noorgal district.

The real toll is feared to be higher, as rescue efforts in the steep terrain have been further hindered by landslides and rockfalls that destroyed roads.

“The situation is dire. In Kunar, entire villages have been completely demolished in at least one district. In Nangarhar’s Dare Noor, people have lost all their family members,” said Faqir Sayed Al-Hashimi from Ehsas Welfare and Social Services Organization, who was helping in rescue efforts on the ground.

“The government is deploying helicopters to reach the wounded, as vehicles can’t access the area. Community members are marching on foot toward Noorgal district, where most of the casualties occurred, but it will take them several hours to get there.”

Since the morning, the Defense Ministry has flown dozens of doctors into Kunar to support hospitals overwhelmed with casualties.

Many of the injured have been transported to Jalalabad, the capital of Nangarhar province.

“Every few minutes, new ambulances are arriving from the Jalalabad airport. Military planes are transferring injured people from Kunar and Dare Noor,” Hazrat Nabi Nabizada, Najm Foundation coordinator, told Arab News from the Nangarhar Regional Hospital.

“Most patients are in critical condition and require orthopedic and neurosurgical care. We’ve lost count, but there are definitely over a thousand wounded at this hospital alone. Many others have been sent to private facilities.”

Casualties have also been reported in Laghman and Nuristan provinces.

“So far, we haven’t recorded any deaths in our province, but the number of injured is steadily rising. More than 60 injured people, including women and children, have already been brought to the provincial hospital,” said Jawhar Niazi, a volunteer with the Najm Foundation in Laghman

“We are mobilizing community members to donate blood to the injured and will be providing food to the family members visiting the hospital.”

source https://www.arabnews.com/node/2613707/world