KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – The death toll from the powerful earthquake that struck Kunar province in eastern Afghanistan on Sunday night has risen to 1,457, with at least 3,394 people injured, Taliban authorities said.
Hamdullah Fitrat, the Taliban’s deputy spokesperson, said on Wednesday that 6,782 houses in the province were destroyed. He added that professional rescue teams from several countries have arrived in the affected areas, and efforts are ongoing to reach remote villages cut off by landslides and damaged roads.
The earthquake also affected the neighboring provinces of Nangarhar, Laghman, and Nuristan, causing significant damage and isolating many communities. A day earlier, the Taliban had reported 1,411 deaths in Kunar alone and over 3,100 injuries.
Most of the deaths were recorded in Kunar, along the border with Pakistan, Taliban authorities said. The population in the province lives in steep valleys in poorly constructed homes made of mud bricks and wood, which are highly vulnerable to earthquakes.
Aid agencies and several countries have stepped in to provide support. The UN pledged $10 million in funding, the EU €1 million, and the UK £1 million. India, Pakistan, Japan, and Turkey have also dispatched emergency supplies, including food, tents, blankets, medical kits, and other essential items.
UN agencies, aid organizations, and Taliban authorities have all called for additional support, warning that current resources are insufficient to address the urgent needs of the thousands of affected families.
The earthquake struck communities already grappling with multiple crises, including displacement, food insecurity, drought, and the return of hundreds of thousands of Afghan refugees from neighboring countries. According to UN data, nearly 23 million people—mostly women and children—require aid this year, while over 2 million Afghan refugees have returned from Iran and Pakistan since January 2025.
This is the third major earthquake to hit Afghanistan in recent years. In 2022, a 5.9-magnitude quake in eastern Afghanistan killed around 1,000 people. In 2023, three 6.3-magnitude quakes struck Herat province in the west, killing around 4,000 people and injuring thousands more.
