Afghanistan’s deadliest earthquake in more than two decades took place on June 22, 2022, killing more than 1,000 people and injuring at least 1,600. The disaster struck a remote mountainous region and came at a time when millions of Afghans are experiencing severe poverty and hunger. Since the Taliban, which enforces strict Islamic laws, took over the government in 2021, other countries, humanitarian organizations and independent aid agencies have been reluctant to provide any assistance to the government because no country has officially recognized it.
But the Taliban’s supreme leader, Haibatullah Akhundzadah, has called for “the international community and all humanitarian organizations to help the Afghan people affected by this great tragedy and to spare no effort to help the affected people.” Within hours of the earthquake, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said that it was dispatching aid, including medical supplies, food and tents, in addition to teams of surgeons and other medical professionals. The World Food Program, which says it has provided aid to 18 million people in Afghanistan in the first half of 2022, was sending food as well.
