KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – At least 1,172 children were killed in last month’s devastating earthquake in eastern Afghanistan, making up more than half of the total fatalities, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said Friday.
The 6.0-magnitude earthquake hit Kunar, Nangarhar, and Laghman provinces on August 31, followed by several aftershocks. The UN says more than 2,164 people were killed, over 3,428 injured, and at least 6,700 homes destroyed or severely damaged.
Speaking at a media briefing in Geneva, UNICEF’s Afghanistan representative, Dr. Tajudeen Oyewale, called the situation devastating and urged immediate international support. “Afghanistan is once again reeling from tragedy, and children are at the sharp end of an aggravating crisis,” he said.
Dr. Oyewale said 45 children have been separated from their families, and 271 have been newly orphaned. “More than half a million people have been impacted—among them, 263,000 children who now face heightened risks,” he added.
He highlighted the extreme vulnerability of children in remote communities, many of whom are now without shelter, grieving loved ones, and struggling to cope with trauma. He added that girls face particular risks, including dropping out of school, child marriage, and limited access to health care, when families lose their homes and livelihoods.
“Unless we act now, this crisis will deepen existing inequalities and place disproportionate burdens on them,” Dr. Oyewale emphasized.
Dr. Oyewale recounted visits to the hardest-hit areas, describing children left alone in rubble, severely injured, or separated from their families. In Nangarhar, he met siblings who had lost their home, livestock, and relatives, while in Kunar he saw a five-year-old girl carrying her injured two-year-old sister, both praying for their hospitalized mother.
“In these remote mountain communities, children face multiple threats, including untreated injuries, unsafe water and sanitation, worsening malnutrition, interrupted schooling, and profound emotional distress,” he said.
Earlier this week, UNICEF launched a $22 million appeal to support 400,000 people affected by the quake, including more than 212,000 children, over the next six months.
“We urge donors and the international community to stand with Afghanistan’s children at this critical moment,” Dr. Oyewale said. “They must not face this crisis alone, and I know they won’t, not while we have the means to act.”
