D£ath Toll From Afghan E∆rthquake Jumps To Over 2,200 Amid Severe Funding Gaps

Death Toll From Afghan Earthquake Jumps To Over 2,200 Amid Severe Funding Gaps

Aid agencies have appealed for urgent international assistance, warning that a severe shortage of funds is crippling their ability to deliver life-saving support.

The death toll from last week’s earthquake in Afghanistan has climbed to more than 2,200 after hundreds of additional bodies were pulled from homes reduced to rubble.

Aid agencies have appealed for urgent international assistance, warning that a severe shortage of funds is crippling their ability to deliver life-saving support.

The 6.0-magnitude quake struck several provinces in the remote and mountainous east on Sunday night, flattening entire villages and trapping residents beneath debris.

Kunar Province has recorded the highest number of casualties, with many victims living in isolated river valleys hemmed in by steep mountains, making rescue operations especially difficult.

Providing an update on Thursday, Taliban government spokesman Hamdullah Fitrat confirmed that the death toll had risen to 2,205 and said search-and-rescue efforts were still underway.

“Tents have been set up for people, and the delivery of first aid and emergency supplies is ongoing,” he said as quoted by AP.

The rough terrain is hindering relief efforts. Taliban authorities have deployed helicopters and airdropped army commandos to help survivors. Aid workers have reported walking for hours to reach villages cut off by landslides and rockfall.

Funding cuts are also having an impact on the response.

The Norwegian Refugee Council said it had fewer than 450 staff in Afghanistan, whereas it had 1,100 in 2023, the date of the last major quake in the country. The council only had one warehouse remaining and no emergency stock.

“We will need to purchase items once we get the funding but this will take potentially weeks and people are in need now,” said Maisam Shafiey, the communications and advocacy advisor for the council in Afghanistan.

“We have only $100,000 available to support emergency response efforts. This leaves an immediate funding gap of $1.9 million.”

Humanitarian organizations have called the latest disaster a crisis within a crisis.

Afghanistan was already struggling with the impact of climate change, particularly drought, a weak economy, and the return of some 2 million Afghans from neighboring countries.