Afghanistan Times
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KABUL — Dozens of Afghan commandos have been airdropped into remote mountainous areas along the eastern border with Pakistan as Kabul intensifies rescue efforts following a powerful 6.0-magnitude earthquake that has killed more than 1,400 people and left tens of thousands homeless.
The quake struck Kunar and Nangarhar provinces on August 31, flattening entire villages and injuring thousands. A second tremor measuring 5.5 on September 2 worsened the destruction, with landslides cutting off road access. Officials said airborne deployments and emergency command centers are being used to reach survivors trapped in isolated valleys.
Local residents told RFE/RL that they are living in the open without shelter, urgently needing food, clean water, and tents. Humanitarian groups have warned that the lack of medical supplies, hygiene kits, and emergency shelters places families — particularly women and girls — at severe risk. Rights groups also say the shortage of female aid workers and doctors is compounding the crisis for women’s health and recovery.
Amnesty International has urged the global community to rush assistance, while criticizing Pakistan’s mass expulsions of Afghan refugees that have added to the strain. UNICEF officials in Kabul highlighted the scale of devastation, noting that terraced housing structures collapsed onto each other, worsening casualties.
International agencies have pledged to deliver aid directly to victims, stressing that assistance must bypass bureaucratic obstacles and reach communities in need. Kabul authorities, meanwhile, acknowledged that the mountainous terrain continues to challenge rescue operations, with helicopters airlifting the injured to medical facilities.
The earthquake is one of the deadliest to hit Afghanistan in recent years, striking a country already reeling from aid cutbacks, economic collapse, and the forced return of hundreds of thousands of refugees from neighboring states. Relief workers warn that with colder weather approaching, urgent shelter solutions are critical to prevent a secondary humanitarian disaster.
