Taliban says more than 2,000 dead after earthquake

Saturday’s 6.3 magnitude earthquake ravaged the western part of Afghanistan, burying people under rubble and flattening villages. Rescuers searched through rubble for survivors on Sunday, and authorities feared the death toll could rise in the coming days.

What’s being done to help the affected communities? Local authorities have been bringing the injured to hospitals in the area. The United Nations said it had personnel on the ground in the area to assess the damage, and it was working to bring aid to the victims. If the Taliban’s death toll is confirmed, this would be the deadliest earthquake in the country in two decades.

Dig deeper: Read Jenny Lind Schmitt’s report in WORLD Magazine about what life is like for women in Afghanistan.