KABUL (Reuters) – Floods in northern Afghanistan have left 315 dead and more than 1,600 injured, according to a latest report announced on Sunday by the Taliban Ministry for Refugees.
In a message published on X, the ministry cites figures from its office in Baghlan province; it evokes the destruction of thousands of houses and heads of cattle carried away by the waves.
Humanitarian organizations have reported damage caused by the floods to health and water infrastructure.
A regular scene of natural disasters, Afghanistan is considered by the United Nations as one of the countries most sensitive to climate change.
Aid to the country was reduced after the Taliban came to power, the withdrawal of foreign forces in 2021 and the reduction in the amount of development aid that formed the backbone of public finances.
The situation has worsened in recent years, which have seen foreign governments face other competing crises and the Taliban roll back the rights of Afghan women, drawing condemnation from the rest of the world.
In a statement released on Sunday, Taliban Economy Minister Din Mohammad Hanif called on the UN, humanitarian agencies and private organizations to come to the aid of flood victims.
(Reporting Mohammad Yunus Yawar in Kabul and Charlotte Greenfield in Islamabad; French version Elizabeth Pineau)
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