KABUL, 4 September 2025 – A rolling wave of aftershocks in eastern Afghanistan is terrifying children who have lost families and homes in the country’s deadliest earthquake in nearly 30 years with the death toll rising to over 2,200, Save the Children said.
More than 72 hours after the 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck, continuous aftershocks - including one today measuring 4.7 – are being felt by Save the Children aid teams in Kunar province, where the de facto authorities have reported the majority of about 2,200 deaths.
More than 260,000 children have been affected by the earthquake and about 280 children left without their parents, according to the UN. More than 5,000 homes have been destroyed, forcing children and their families to cram into tents or sleep in the open, with some using old rice bags as bedding [1].
Ulfat* was injured when his home collapsed in the earthquake, and his two children were treated for mild injuries by a Save the Children medical team.
Ulfat* said:
"I can’t do anything for my children because I have nothing. All I could do was move them to a safer location. Everything we own is buried in the rubble. In that moment, we couldn’t think about belongings - our lives were in danger, and we just tried to save ourselves.
"In our neighbourhood, there are some families where 11 members of a single family died in the earthquake. Another neighbour lost 15 members, and another lost five. We have many families like this.”
Save the Children has set up a childcare tent in a part of Kunar where many people have arrived in search of help. Staff are providing essential psychosocial support for children, as well as providing a safe space where parents and caregivers can leave their children while they search for information on missing relatives or register for assistance.
The only way to get aid into villages still cut off by landslides is by carrying it, a journey that can often take hours navigating rock falls. These were hard-to-reach areas even before the earthquake, with the only access via narrow, dirt tracks cut into the side of mountains. Despite these challenges, Save the Children has medical teams working round-the-clock and has established a pipeline to bring clean water to one district and brought in portable latrines.
Samira Sayed Rahman, Programmes and Advocacy Director, Save the Children in Afghanistan said:
“With homes in ruins, and so many relatives and loved ones dead or injured, children are carrying a terrible burden of loss – and the aftershocks are constantly reminding them of the terror they experienced when the earthquake struck.
“In seconds, everything was lost for thousands of children. Every family I saw in Kunar had lost multiple members. This is a terrifying time for children. The fear and grief children are carrying will not disappear when the rubble is cleared.
“We are providing immediate mental health support for children. Thousands will need long-term help. Donors must act now with immediate and sustained funding. The lives and futures of children in Kunar depends on it.”
Afghanistan’s northeast and eastern regions have experienced numerous powerful earthquakes in recent decades, adding to the ongoing humanitarian crisis in the country where about 23 million people – or about half of the population – are in need of humanitarian assistance this year. One earthquake in Takhar province in 1998 left more than 4,000 people dead.
Save the Children has been working in Afghanistan since 1976, including during periods of conflict and natural disasters. We have programmes in 10 provinces and work with partners in an additional 11 provinces. We deliver services spanning health, nutrition, education, child protection, shelter, water, sanitation, hygiene and livelihoods.
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* Denotes name changed to protect identity
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