蜜芽传媒

A powerful earthquake has killed one thousand people and left hundreds more injured in Afghanistan, a Taliban official has told the 蜜芽传媒. Pictures show landslides and ruined mud-built homes, where rescuers have been scrambling to treat the injured.

UNICEF has staff all over Afghanistan. Its head of communications Sam Mort explains the perilous situation and how the emergency response is being deployed. She says that critical supplies of blankets, tents and medical supplies are being sent to the affected communities, but that the unseasonal rain is hampering their efforts.

She says the Taliban authorities contacted the UN for help and have been working with their teams on the rescue efforts. The earthquake has come in the middle of the worst drought for 37 years, where over a million children under five years old are suffering from "chronic malnutrition".

Photo: Scene following earthquake in Paktika province, Afghanistan, June 22nd 2022 Credit: Afghanistan Information Service