The earthquake in Herat that reportedly left over 2,400 people dead and over 2,000 others injured has sparked widespread reactions inside Afghanistan as well as abroad.
A magnitude 6.3 earthquake shocked Herat and its neighboring provinces on Saturday. This was followed by a series of aftershocks.
The US Secretary of State said on X that Washington is “carefully tracking the impact of the earthquake” and “our humanitarian partners are responding with urgent aid in support of the people of Afghanistan.”
The Qatari foreign ministry also in a statement expressed “its solidarity” with victims.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stresses that Qatar stands with the victims of the earthquake and is fully prepared to provide necessary assistance for the recovery from its effects,” the statement reads.
The foreign ministry of Saudi Arabia in a statement expressed “its deepest sympathy and sorrow for the victims of the earthquake.”
The office of the caretaker Prime Minister of Pakistan said in a statement that the chairman of the NDMA (National Disaster Management Authority of Pakistan), Inam Haider Malik, on Sunday chaired a session which was attended by Pakistan’s ambassador in Afghanistan Ubaid Ur Rehman Nizamani, and representatives from Pakistan’s ministry of foreign affairs and other departments joined the session on the situation of earthquake in western Afghanistan.
“NDMA has arranged to dispatch relief items which include: food items, medications, tents and blankets,” the statement said. “In addition to these items, Search and Rescue Teams … are ready to be dispatched.”
The UAE’s ministry of foreign affairs also offered its “sincere condolences and solidarity with the Afghan people.”
Hissein Brahim Taha, the Secretary-General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), on social media expressed his condolences. Taha affirmed that the OIC stands in full support of and in solidarity with Afghanistan and its people in this “trying moment.”
The deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, said that the Islamic Emirate will welcome any assistance of any country to the victims.
