A series of devastating quakes has taken thousands of lives and left thousands more homeless. Aid specialists say the Taliban lacks the equipment and experience to help the survivors.
Children walk past makeshift shelters in front of the Jami Mosque in Herat just two days after a magnitude 6.3 earthquake in western Afghanistan on Oct. 15.Mohsen Karimi /AFP via Getty Images
Basir, an academic who has worked with previous Afghan governments on disaster management efforts, joined volunteers in Herat to help rescue survivors from the debris. Doctors and paramedics treat injured earthquake survivors in front of the Herat Regional Specialized Hospital.Doctors and paramedics treat injured earthquake survivors in front of the Herat Regional Specialized Hospital.According to the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs , the earthquakes have collectively killed more than 1,480 people and affected 27,150 across six districts of Herat.
Afghan residents clear debris from a damaged house after an earthquake in the Zendeh Jan district of Herat province on Oct. 7.Mohsen Karimi /AFP via Getty Images In the wake of this disaster, the Taliban has appealed to"rich Afghan businesses" to donate toward relief efforts. However, Afghans question the sustainability of such efforts.
Since taking over, the Taliban have imposed a number of restrictions on women's freedoms and movements, including a ban on women working for NGOs. "For example, one of the basic needs we identified among women survivors was for hygiene products, and procured sanitary napkins for them. But some of the Taliban members prevented distribution, saying that it will encourage heresy and lack of faith among the women," she says. The Taliban members, it seems, deemed feminine hygiene products as un-Islamic.
The scene after a series of earthquakes in the Zendeh Jan district of Herat province on Oct. 9, as volunteers look for survivors and dead bodies. Some Afghan aid specialists say Taliban recovery efforts have been inadequate.Mohsen Karimi /AFP via Getty Images
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