2,445 People Died After Saturday’s Earthquake in Herat, Says Doctors Without Borders

The UK foreign office stated that there is no alternative, but pragmatic engagement with the Taliban government and the British government is currently following this policy.

This is the first time that the UK has recognised the Taliban's rule as "Afghanistan’s administration” and sent a conciliatory message for the group.

It is not clear who and which organisation, the statement has targeted. However, the statement mentioned that no one is allowed to use UK’s territory to seek "political changes through violence" in Afghanistan or to plan, recruit for, incite or finance terrorism in Afghanistan.

Since the return of the Taliban to the power, several groups have initiated armed resistance against the Taliban. These groups have declared their intent to pursue this conflict until the beginning of political negotiations and the establishment of a legitimate government in Afghanistan.

The UK government’s statement added, “Political change sought through armed violence or incitement of violence that amounts to an offence in UK law can be subject to investigation.”

It added that any kind of violence is not in the interest of Afghanistan or the international community, and they deplore violent attacks of all kinds.

The Taliban has repeatedly expressed that western countries do not support the armed resistance against the group interpreting it as a sign of international acceptance of the Taliban's rule in Afghanistan.

Earlier, Tobias Ellwood, a British parliament member, called for engagement with the Taliban, which caused a controversy and led to his resignation.

The Taliban-controlled Bakhtar news agency reported that there is a possibility of an increase in casualties.

Bakhtar reported that the earthquake on Wednesday caused financial loss and death and injury to residents of Injil, Raubat-i-Sangi, and Gulran districts.

At least three more earthquakes jolted western Afghanistan on Wednesday morning. The US Geological Survey stated that the magnitudes of the earthquakes were 6.3, 5.0, and 4.1, respectively.

The first earthquake occurred at 05:30 in the morning, and within one hour, two additional earthquakes jolted Herat again.

According to sources, the earthquake also left "casualties" in remote districts of the province, however, the exact number of casualties is still unclear.

Reports indicate that at least one of the historical minarets of Herat city has also been damaged due to the earthquake.

According to the sources, few houses in Kushk and Gulran districts have been destroyed too.

The epicentre of one of the earthquakes is said to be Chahar Burj area in the center of Herat province.

Local sources said that Wednesday's earthquake was also felt in Farah, Badghis, Nimroz, and Mashhad city of Iran.

According to sources, the earthquake destroyed residential houses in the central areas of Herat.

This earthquake occurred in Herat five days after a 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck the province on Saturday, resulting in the loss of thousands of lives and injuries.

According to OCHA, another 485 people, including 191 men and 294 women, are missing.

According to the UN agency, six schools, three kindergartens, and two educational centres in this district were fully destroyed and eight other schools were partially damaged.

The United Nations added that 33 unaccompanied minors, 17 unaccompanied elderly, and 53 female-headed households have been identified as victims.

Meanwhile, on the third day after Herat's deadly earthquake, search operations continue among the ruins to find the missing people.

On Saturday, a 6.3 magnitude earthquake jolted Herat province.

According to the WHO official, some of the victims have been hospitalised due to severe wounds.

The Taliban government announced on Monday that at least 2,400 people died in the earthquake and more than 2,000 others had been injured.

“The earthquake happened around 11 in the morning, when men were out of the houses, so the majority of those who are injured and died are women and children who were inside the houses at the time", AbouZeid told Reuters.

He added that two-thirds of the victims with serious injuries at the hospital are children and women.

AbouZeid expressed his deep concern after witnessing the alarming number of children inside hospitals in critical condition, describing it as “devastating”.

Abouzeid emphasised that the provision of financial aid for rescue operations and support for the earthquake victims in Herat is very important, especially since the donor countries pay less attention to Afghanistan now due to crises in other parts of the world.

Foreign diplomats, officials from aid organisations, and experts have pointed out that the crises in Ukraine and the Middle East, along with the restriction on women's employment within aid organisations, have collectively led to a decrease in international aid to Afghanistan.

This WHO official stated that incidents in the Middle East have diverted attention and there was little attention toward the crisis in Afghanistan.

He added that hospitals need more equipment to treat earthquake victims.

The UK said that they were arrested on charges of violating Afghan law. However, no information has been provided regarding the identities of these released UK nationals.

Earlier this year, the British Home Office announced negotiations with the Taliban for the release of its citizens.

In a statement, the ministry urged all British citizens to comply with the anti-terrorism laws of the United Kingdom as well as the laws of their destination countries while abroad.

Since the Taliban’s takeover of power in Afghanistan, many countries have advised their citizens to avoid traveling to Afghanistan.

Several Western governments repeatedly warn their citizens that Afghanistan is known as a high-risk tourist destination due to the unstable security situation and the presence of armed warring groups.

According to reports, although the security problems caused by the Taliban have now been resolved, the threats of ISIS as well as the kidnapping and arrest of foreign citizens are still high.