Kabul: Rescue operations are under way in eastern Afghanistan after a powerful quake killed at least 812 people and injured thousands, with the Taliban urging international support as survivors remain trapped beneath collapsed homes.
The 6.0 magnitude quake struck just after midnight on Sunday at a shallow depth of 10 km (6 miles), flattening mudbrick and stone homes across steep valleys in the eastern provinces of Kunar and Nangarhar. Entire villages, including Mazar Dara in Nurgal district, were reduced to rubble.
“The rooms and walls collapsed … killing some children and injuring others,” said 22-year-old survivor Zafar Khan Gojar, evacuated to Jalalabad with his brother, whose leg was broken. Others described digging through debris with their bare hands, searching desperately for relatives.
Rescuers faced enormous challenges amid heavy rain, blocked mountain roads, and fears of fresh landslides. “The area … was affected by heavy rain in the last 24-48 hours, so the risk of landslides and rock slides is also significant – many roads are impassable,” said Kate Carey of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA).
I stand in full solidarity with the people of Afghanistan after the devastating earthquake that hit the country earlier today.
I extend my deepest condolences to the families of the victims and wish a speedy recovery to those injured.
The @UN team in Afghanistan is mobilized…
— António Guterres (@antonioguterres) September 1, 2025
The disaster compounds the struggles of Afghanistan’s Taliban-led administration, already confronting a collapse in foreign aid, sanctions, and the mass deportation of Afghan migrants from neighboring countries.
Sharafat Zaman, spokesperson for the health ministry in Kabul, appealed for urgent global assistance. “We need it because here lots of people lost their lives and houses,” he said. Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban’s chief spokesperson, confirmed the death toll at 812, with most casualties in Kunar province.
The defence ministry said military rescue teams had conducted 40 flights, evacuating more than 420 wounded and dead, while health workers rushed to dispose of animal carcasses to prevent contamination of water supplies. Casualties are expected to rise further as rescuers access cut-off communities.
Villagers prayed over the dead wrapped in white shrouds, before burying them on hillsides, while helicopters ferried the wounded to overstretched hospitals. Some survivors wept amid the ruins of their homes; others began clearing rubble by hand.
Deeply saddened by the loss of lives due to the earthquake in Afghanistan. Our thoughts and prayers are with the bereaved families in this difficult hour, and we wish a speedy recovery to the injured. India stands ready to provide all possible humanitarian aid and relief to those…
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 1, 2025
The quake marks Afghanistan’s third major earthquake since the Taliban seized power in 2021, a takeover that triggered a freeze in most international funding. Humanitarian aid to Afghanistan has dropped to $767 million this year, from $3.8 billion in 2022, according to aid officials.
Britain on Monday pledged £1 million ($1.35 million) in emergency aid, to be channelled through the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the International Red Cross (IFRC) to bypass Taliban authorities. “This emergency funding will help our partners deliver critical healthcare and emergency supplies to the most hard-hit,” said British Foreign Minister David Lammy.
India announced the delivery of 1,000 family tents to Kabul and 15 tonnes of food to Kunar, with further shipments to follow. China also signaled readiness to provide relief according to Afghanistan’s needs and within its capacity.
