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CatastropheAfghanistan

Afghanistan: Deadly storms lash country's east

July 16, 2024

Dozens of people had been killed, hundreds injured and hundreds of homes destroyed, local officials said. It is particularly difficult for foreign assistance to reach Afghanistan since the Taliban came back to power.

https://p.dw.com/p/4iMI0
People gather to clear the rubble of a house partially damaged by a landslide in Surkhroad district east of Kabul, Afghanistan on July 15, 2024.
Heavy rains and intense stormed have ravaged eastern AfghanistanImage: Shafiullah Kakar/AP/dpa/picture alliance

At least 40 people had been killed and hundreds injured in eastern Afghanistan as of Tuesday, local officials said as heavy rains continued to pelt the region. 

Saifullah Khalid, head of Nangarhar province's disaster management authority, said that 350 people were wounded and some 400 homes had also been demolished by the torrent.

Many of the injured were brought to the regional hospital in Nangarhar from Jalalabad, the capital of the province which was suffering from electricity blackouts and impassable roads due to the storms.

The latest tragedy comes after flash floods in May killed hundreds of people and destroyed huge areas of agricultural land where 80% of the population relies on farming to sustain themselves.

People gather to clear the rubble of a house partially damaged by a landslide in Surkhroad district, east of Kabul on July 15, 2024.
The floods destroyed hundreds of houses and caused electricity blackoutsImage: Shafiullah Kakar/AP/dpa/picture alliance

Compounding the issues in Afghanistan is the lack of foreign aid agencies' presence on the ground. Many organizations left the country due to the instability that has arisen since the Taliban violently took back control in 2021.

Scientists have also warned that Afghanistan, one of the poorest countries in the world, is set to be particularly affected by the disastrous impact of climate change — with extreme weather becoming more common. 

es/rmt (AFP, AP)