|
 Relief groups' efforts to assess the damage were hindered by an
unstable security situation that has left much of the affected areas
unsafe for international aid workers and government troops.
But the Taliban, which have stepped up their Islamist insurgency
against the Western-backed government in Kabul this year, indicated
they would not stand in the way of aid efforts.
"The Islamic Emirate calls on our good-willed countrymen and
charitable organizations to not hold back in providing shelter, food
and medical supplies to the victims," the group said in a condolence
message to quake victims, using its formal name.
"And it similarly orders its mujahideen in the affected areas to
lend their complete help."
Authorities confirmed 228 deaths in Pakistan while in Afghanistan,
the death toll had climbed to more than 80. At least 4,000 houses
and compounds had been destroyed or damaged, Afghan Chief Executive
Abdullah Abdullah said.
 The toll could climb as road and communications links are restored
to isolated villages. As a harsh winter sets in across the rugged
Hindu Kush mountains where the earthquake struck, the plight of
thousands left homeless is becoming more serious.
"We have insufficient food and other aid," said Abdul Habib Sayed
Khil, chief of police in Kunar, one of the worst-hit provinces,
where 42 people were confirmed dead. "It has been raining for four
days and the weather is very cold."
In Kabul, the capital, NATO officials said they were helping Afghan
security forces plan relief operations.
In Pakistan, where landslides and heavy rain and snow over the
weekend had already left thousands of tourists stranded in
mountainous areas of the north, the country's well-equipped military
was heavily involved in relief efforts.
Military spokesman General Asim Bajwa said assessment teams were
still surveying damage and troops were working to help reopen the
Karakoram highway linking Pakistan to China, after it was blocked by
landslides.
Two army helicopters joined the relief mission and a special air
force plane flew to the Chitral region, where 29 people were killed
and more than 200 injured.
[to top of second column] |
The earthquake struck almost exactly six months after Nepal suffered
its worst quake on record, on April 25. Including the toll from a
major aftershock in May, 9,000 people lost their lives there and
900,000 homes were damaged or destroyed.
Monday's initial quake of magnitude 7.5 was followed by seven
aftershocks, of intensity ranging as high as 4.8, the U.S.
Geological Survey said. The latest aftershock came just before dawn
on Tuesday.
The quake was 213 km (132 miles) deep and centered 254 km (158
miles) northeast of Kabul.
The United States and Iran were among countries that offered
humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, which already depends
heavily on foreign aid after decades of war wrecked its economy and
infrastructure.
In Washington, White House spokesman Josh Earnest said the U.S.
Agency for International Development was ready to provide emergency
shelter and relief supply kits.
Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said a relief package would be
announced after the damage had been assessed.
"The government is capable enough to rescue and rehabilitate those
affected by the earthquake and every effort will be made to help
fellow citizens in distress," Sharif said during a visit to the
district of Shangla, where at least 38 people perished.
(Additional reporting by Mehreen Zahra-Malik in Islamabad and Krista
Mahr in Kabul; Writing by Kay Johnson and James Mackenzie; Editing
by Nick Macfie and Clarence Fernandez)
[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
