Afghanistan seeks emergency medical supplies for earthquake survivors

KABUL: Afghanistan does not have enough medical supplies to treat the injured from an earthquake that killed 1,000 people, a senior official said on Friday, as authorities ended the search for survivors in remote southeastern mountains.
About 2,000 people were injured and 10,000 houses were partially or completely destroyed in the early Wednesday earthquake, Mohammad Nassim Haqqani, a spokesperson for the disaster ministry, told Reuters.
“The health ministry does not have enough drugs, we need medical aid and other necessities because it’s a big disaster,” he said.
The 6.1 magnitude earthquake struck about 160 km (100 miles) southeast of Kabul near the Pakistani border, in a region of arid mountains dotted with small settlements that has was often contested over Afghanistan’s decades of war. Poor communications and a lack of proper roads have hampered relief efforts in a country grappling with a humanitarian crisis that deteriorated sharply after the Taliban took over last August as US-led international forces withdrew.
The disaster is a major test for the hardline Islamists, who have been largely isolated; shunned by many because of worries about human rights and cut off from much direct international assistance because of sanctions. Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and the United Arab Emirates all said on Thursday they planned to send aid. Supplies from Pakistan have already crossed the border. – MD