In what may be termed as one of worst disasters in Central Asia, an earthquake measuring 6.0 magnitude on Richter scale struck Afghanistan on Monday (September 1, 2025) leaving over 800 people dead and at least 2,800 injured, a Reuter report cited Taliban spokesperson as saying.
Rescue teams have been pressed into service to trace and find missing people from under rubble caused by the destruction due to strong tremors.
Even as the rescue operations are underway, Sharafat Zaman, spokesperson for the Ministry of Public Health in a statement to the media said, “The number of casualties and injuries is high, but since the area is difficult to access, our teams are still on site”.
According to the defence ministry statement, military rescue teams have been deployed across the region.
Today’s earthquake is recorded as the fiercest to befall the Taliban region since 2023 when a 6.3 magnitude earthquake killed around 4,000 people. It’s the region’s third major quake since the Taliban took charge of Afghanistan in 2021.
The current earthquake could overstretch the resources of the Taliban administration reeling under the crises of foreign aid and deportation of thousands of Afghans by neighbouring countries.
