Afghanistan struck by another earthquake as death toll surges beyond 1400

Afghanistan has been struck by a second devastating earthquake in less than 48 hours, compounding the scale of destruction and deepening the humanitarian crisis in the country’s mountainous southeast.

On Tuesday, September 2,, a 6.6-magnitude tremor struck at a shallow depth of 10 km, mirroring Sunday midnight’s 6.0-magnitude quake in the east. Both quakes flattened villages, trapped hundreds under rubble, and left communities reeling. Taliban government spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid confirmed that the death toll had risen to more than 1,400, while over 3,000 people have been injured.

Rescue operations are being described as a “race against time,” with workers struggling to access remote areas cut off by landslides and rugged terrain. “We cannot afford to forget the people of Afghanistan who are facing multiple crises,” warned Indrika Ratwatte, the UN’s resident coordinator in Afghanistan. “These are life-and-death decisions while we race against time to reach people.”

The devastation is widespread across several provinces, where homes made of mud and wood crumbled instantly under the powerful shocks. Entire villages have been flattened, leaving survivors desperately searching for loved ones.

Homa Nader, acting head of the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent in Afghanistan, told The New York Times that it took relief teams more than four hours to reach Nur Gal district from Jalalabad, a distance of just 56 km, due to blocked and damaged roads. By Monday afternoon, some roads had reopened, allowing ambulances to ferry injured victims to hospitals.

The United Nations has urged the international community to extend immediate assistance, cautioning that without swift aid the casualty numbers could rise exponentially. Afghanistan, already grappling with economic hardship and ongoing humanitarian challenges, now faces one of its deadliest natural disasters in recent years.