KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – Local officials in Afghanistan’s Taliban-controlled provinces of Badakhshan and Laghman have reported multiple traffic accidents this week, resulting in significant casualties.
In Badakhshan, a vehicle reportedly plunged into a ravine in the Shahr-e Bozorg district on Sunday, March 15, killing five people and injuring four others. Abdul Rashid Rashad, the Taliban-appointed district governor, said the incident occurred in the Kotel Katak area. According to him, the vehicle—a Toyota Fortuner—went off the road and fell into a steep ravine. The injured were transported to local medical centers for treatment.
Officials noted that similar accidents are common in Badakhshan, where mountainous terrain and poor road conditions are among the primary causes of traffic-related incidents.
Meanwhile, in Laghman province, Habibullah Mubarez, the Taliban’s traffic director, reported that since the beginning of the current solar year (March 2025), 80 traffic accidents have occurred, leaving 284 people dead or injured. Of these, 70 fatalities and 214 injuries were recorded, including 20 women among the deceased and 48 women among the injured. Children were also among the victims, although no specific figures were provided.
Mubarez indicated that most accidents took place along the Kabul–Jalalabad highway, in Mehtarlam city, and across various districts of Laghman. He did not provide detailed explanations for the causes of these accidents, but authorities have long cited poor road infrastructure, lack of traffic signs, and driver negligence as key factors contributing to the rising toll of traffic incidents in Afghanistan.
The recent reports highlight the ongoing dangers of travel in Afghanistan, where rugged terrain and underdeveloped infrastructure continue to pose severe risks to motorists and passengers alike.
Traffic accidents claim hundreds of lives each year in Afghanistan and leave many more injured. Officials frequently cite reckless driving, poor road conditions and a lack of traffic signs as the main causes of such incidents.
Road crashes have surged since the Taliban returned to power in 2021. Data reviewed by Etilaatroz and KabulNow indicate a fivefold rise in accidents, with 1,187 recorded between March 2021 and March 2022, rising to 2,662 the following year, and at least 5,520 between March 2023 and March 2024, a nearly 80% increase over two years. Recent reports indicate the trend has persisted, with hundreds killed and injured in recent months across multiple provinces.
