KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – The Taliban’s police command in Laghman says that a young man drowned while swimming in Alingar district of the province in eastern Afghanistan.
Mohammad Younus Yousafzai, spokesperson for the Taliban’s police command in Laghman, said the incident occurred at around 4:30 p.m. yesterday (Saturday, July 4) in the Barkhan Baba area of Alingar district.
He added that the victim was identified as Abdul Rahim, 28, and that his body was recovered from the water by local residents and handed over to his family.
According to Mr. Yousafzai, the young man had gone to the Barkhan Baba area with a number of his friends for recreation when he drowned while swimming.
Since the beginning of the current solar year, multiple cases of people drowning and losing their lives while swimming have been reported.
The latest drowning comes amid a broader pattern of water-related fatalities across Afghanistan. According to the Taliban-run National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), at least 75 people died and three others were injured in drowning incidents between March 21 and June 5, 2026. The fatalities included 41 children, seven women, and 27 men, indicating that, on average, nearly one person lost their life to drowning every day during the reporting period.
The recurring incidents have drawn attention to the lack of water safety measures across the country. Carelessness, combined with the absence of essential rescue equipment and emergency response facilities near rivers, reservoirs, and other recreational water sites, is considered among the main factors contributing to these fatalities.
Children continue to account for the majority of drowning victims. According to the NDMA statistics, more than half of those who lost their lives during the reporting period were children, highlighting the risks faced by young people in areas where rivers, canals and reservoirs are easily accessible and often lack protective barriers or warning signs.
