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Aid starts arriving after entire villages destroyed in deadly quake
Villagers rushed to bury the dead on Thursday and dug through rubble by hand in search of survivors following Wednesday’s deadly 6.1 magnitude earthquake that has killed over 1,000 people and injured hundreds more.
The quake, which struck just before 2am on Wednesday morning, while most people were asleep, has completely destroyed hundreds of houses and in some cases entire villages.
AP reported that in a village in Paktika, the men dug a row of graves as they tried to lay the dead to rest quickly in line with Muslim tradition.
In one courtyard, bodies lay wrapped in plastic to protect them from the rain that is hampering relief efforts for survivors.
The quake was Afghanistan’s deadliest in 20 years and officials have warned the casualty toll could rise.
NGOs have heeded the Islamic Emirate’s desperate appeal for help and aid is starting to make its way into the affected areas.
Among those who stepped in to help was the Bayat Foundation, which sent in an ambulance, medical supplies and a team of doctors, who will operate a mobile clinic in the worst hit areas to help the injured.
The World Food Program, Pakistan, Qatar, Iran and the United Nations have also dispatched assistance and aid along with other UN agencies.
Paktika residents meanwhile came together on Thursday and in conjunction with a charity association and local businesses established a collection of cash, food and water for those in need.
By mid-day these residents had already collected over 200,000 Afghanis for quake victims.
Afghanistan’s national cricket hero Rashid Khan also reached out to his fans and launched an appeal for donations on his social media pages.
In a rare move, the IEA’s supreme leader, Haibatullah Akhundzadah, pleaded for help from the world on Wednesday. In a statement he called on the international community to send in help as soon as possible.
However, the full extent of the devastation among villages in remote mountainous regions was slow in coming to light.
The head of the Paktika provincial health department Dr Hekmatullah Esmat told Ariana News early Thursday that in Paktika alone, “hundreds of families have been killed”.
One survivor, who spoke to Ariana News, said he lost 18 members from his 24-member family in the quake.
The official death toll has however been put at almost 1,000 but officials have said this tally is expected to rise.
The earthquake struck just before 2am on Wednesday morning, when most people were asleep. Thousands of village houses collapsed, resulting in the high casualty toll.
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Maldives recalls envoy to Pakistan over meeting with Afghanistan envoy
The island nation’s foreign ministry said the much publicized meeting had not been sanctioned by the government
The Maldives government has recalled its top diplomat in Pakistan after he had an unauthorized meeting with an Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan envoy in Islamabad.
The island nation’s foreign ministry said the much publicized meeting between the Maldives High Commissioner Mohamed Thoha and IEA envoy Sardar Ahmad Shakeeb on Friday had not been sanctioned by the government.
Maldives media reported that the foreign ministry stated: “Consequently, appropriate action has been taken by the government of Maldives.”
Thoha’s name has also been removed from the website of the Maldives mission in Islamabad, and an official source told AFP that he had been recalled.
Since regained control of Afghanistan in August 2021, no country has yet officially recognized the government.
However, the IEA has been making inroads into the diplomatic arena and has official missions now stationed in a number of regional countries.
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Afghanistan exported more than 2,500 tons of pine nuts in 1402
Afghan pine nut is mostly exported to China, India, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates.
The Ministry of Industry and Commerce says that in the past solar year (1402) more than 2,500 tons of pine nuts worth $27 million were exported to neighboring countries and beyond.
Afghan pine nut is mostly exported to China, India, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates.
“The total weight of black pine nut exports during 1402 was 2,523 tons and the value was $27 million, mostly to China, India, Pakistan, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United States, Britain, Australia, the Netherlands, and other countries,” said Abdul Salam Javad Akhundzada, the spokesman of the Ministry of Industry and Commerce.
Officials in the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock say that since last year, pine nut production has increased in the country and they have also expanded artificial forests to harvest more pine nuts.
“In order to revive pine nut forests, according to last year's development budget, pine trees have been planted on approximately 1,500 hectares of land.
There used to be pine trees on these lands, but they were cut down or destroyed in a fire,” said Misbahuddin Mustain, the spokesperson of the Ministries of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock.
Experts say that currently China buys most of Afghanistan's pint nuts, but the government must find new markets so that it can be sold at a better price.
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IEA says deportation of Afghan migrants from neighboring countries has intensified
A committee of the High Commission for Addressing the Problems of Migrants said the process of forced expulsion of Afghan migrants from neighboring countries has intensified.
However, members of the committee emphasized, in their meeting with the Prime Minister's administrative deputy, that they have managed the resettlement of the returnees well in cooperation with relevant institutions.
In the meeting, Abdul Salam Hanafi, the administrative deputy prime minister, said that as winter approaches, committees should seek to ensure that the returnees will not face problems.
Experts say that the refugee hosting countries should treat Afghan migrants according to international laws, and take into account the current conditions of the country.
“To reduce immigration and increase economic stability, creating employment opportunities, increasing investment, giving various types of loans to people and issuing securities can be effective,” said Asifa Stanikzai, a migration expert.
Iranian officials have said that they deport 3,000 Afghan immigrants from the country every day and they plan to deport two million Afghan immigrants by the end of this year.
Forced deportation of Afghan migrants from Iran and Pakistan has been a serious challenge in the last three years, but according to experts, the Islamic Emirate has been able to manage the process to some extent.
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