Attachments
A. SITUATION ANALYSIS
Description of the crisis
On 31 August 2025, a 6.0-magnitude earthquake struck southeastern Afghanistan near Jalalabad, about 30 km from Momand Dara (Nangarhar) and Nurgal (Kunar), causing major shaking across Kunar and Nangarhar, with impacts extending to Laghman and Nuristan. Significant aftershocks (5.2, 4.5, 5.6) followed immediately and again on 5 September, worsening the effects and complicating early response. On 23 September, another earthquake with 4.9- magnitude struck eastern Afghanistan. The earthquake occurred at a depth of 10 kilometres (6.2 miles) and was centred approximately 23 kilometres (14 miles) from Jalalabad, the capital of Nangarhar province. Key infrastructure, including water sources, was also damaged, with reports of livestock and farmland decimated. The southeastern Afghanistan earthquake caused severe destruction, killing over 2,200 people, injuring more than 3,600, and affecting up to 3 million. Thousands were displaced after widespread housing collapse in Kunar and Nangarhar, with over 3,000 families currently reside in at least five major sites for internally displaced people (IDP) across two districts, with many smaller areas of displacement across the entire earthquake affected area. 1 As winter is already ongoing, winterisation support remains a priority. The earthquake struck at a time when Afghanistan is already facing a severe humanitarian crisis, marked by prolonged economic downturn, shrinking international assistance, and the forced return of migrants from neighbouring countries. Vulnerable groups, particularly women and children, face disproportionate risks and reduced access to urgent medical care. The humanitarian situation is dire and evolving rapidly. Entire villages in Nangarhar and Kunar have been destroyed, with thousands still believed trapped under rubble. The combination of fragile housing (mostly mud structures), heavy rainfall, and unstable terrain has deepened the impact of the disaster, creating urgent and large-scale needs for shelter, healthcare, food assistance, and protection. On 3 November 2025, a second major earthquake of 6.3 magnitude hit northern Afghanistan near the Balkh– Samangan border at a depth of 28 km. The tremor was widely felt across northern and central Afghanistan and as far as Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan.