Due to the earthquake, many people are living under evacuation.

The earthquake that struck Paktika and Khost provinces in eastern Afghanistan on June 22, 2022 has left many people in the affected areas evacuated. In the Spera district of Khost Province alone, one of the areas JEN has surveyed, more than 1,600 houses have been completely destroyed and about 4,000 partially destroyed, rendering them uninhabitable. Those affected are currently living in tents. Khazan, who lives in Spera district, vividly remembers when the earthquake struck. His son, his wife, and his grandchildren were trapped under the collapsed room and suffered severe injuries. They desperately called for help, but the entire village had collapsed and no one from the neighborhood could come to their rescue.

The areas affected by the earthquake are located in mountainous regions and lack basic infrastructure to supply safe drinking water. Schools are located only far away, so most of the children are unable to access them. The altitude is also high, around 3,000 meters, and snow begins to fall in September, so the winter climate is said to be very severe. In this area, people usually sell their livestock and during the winter, they store the meat as dried meat. However, many of the livestock in the affected areas have been buried under debris, and even the removal of their corpses has not yet been completed.

In order to support the lives of those affected as quickly as possible, JEN distributed multipurpose cash (cash that can be used for multiple purposes) so that each family can purchase what they need fitting their own situation. This allows each household to purchase approximately two months of food, hygiene items, supplies to survive the harsh winter, and educational needs. We will keep you updated on the situation.

The area is located in the mountainous region and has been affected by the earthquake.

Houses have been completely destroyed and removal of debris is a major issue.

After the earthquake, items necessary for daily life can not fit inside the tents in which people are evacuated and are placed outdoors.

Second food distribution project completed this year

Since the political upheaval last August, Afghanistan has been in a state of food crisis. The invasion of Ukraine has also caused food prices to rise even higher, putting people in an increasingly difficult situation. Facing this situation, on June 19, the second food distribution project of the year was completed. We were able to deliver two months' worth of food packages to a total of 1,200 households in particularly vulnerable situations living in Nangarhar Province, located on the border with Pakistan. The United Nations warned that 22.8 million people, which equals to more than half of the population, would face severe hunger and that humanitarian needs would expand to record levels. In addition, 3.2 million children, which equals to half of all children under the age of five, are said to be at risk of acute undernutrition by the end of the year. In this situation, identifying 1,200 particularly vulnerable households was a difficult task. We established standards for the project, such as households with pregnant or lactating women and households headed by women, and proceeded the project in close coordination with other support organizations operating in the area.

Shortly after the project was completed, a strong earthquake struck southeastern Afghanistan in the early morning of June 22.

The number of victims reportedly already exceeds 1,000. In order to support the people affected by this earthquake, JEN is in the area and has begun surveying the situation. We will report as soon as we receive more information. We would appreciate your support.

We actually visited the home to check the situation.

A woman and her son receiving a food package.