US to announce $16.4 million in aid for Afghanistan following earthquakes
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Afghan men standing on the debris of damaged houses after the recent earthquake in the district of Zinda Jan in Herat on Oct 10.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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WASHINGTON – The United States is providing US$12 million (S$16.4 million) in immediate humanitarian assistance to respond to earthquakes in Afghanistan in October
Multiple earthquakes struck the western province of Herat last Saturday and on Wednesday, destroying entire villages in the war-torn country, which has long relied on foreign aid that has dried up since the Taliban took over in 2021.
Aid agencies launched fresh appeals for funds to deal with the fallout of the deadly earthquakes, as the local authorities called on Thursday for urgent help for thousands of people left homeless in the aftermath of the tremors.
USAid said in the statement that the assistance to be announced on Thursday, first reported by Reuters, will include support for the International Organisation for Migration to continue to reach those affected by the earthquake, including with emergency shelter kits, cooking and water collection materials, blankets, clothing and other items.
“USAid will continue to stand with the Afghan people to respond to humanitarian needs,” the agency said in the statement.
Afghanistan’s Taliban-run government has put out conflicting numbers on the death toll, with the Disaster Management Ministry saying that more than 2,400 had been killed, but the Health Ministry confirming just over 1,000. The United Nations’ humanitarian office on Tuesday put the death toll at 1,294, but from just one district.
Death tolls often change when information comes in from more remote parts of a country where decades of war have left infrastructure in a shambles, and made relief and rescue operations difficult to organise and coordinate. REUTERS
