A magnitude 6.0+ earthquake struck Afghanistan on August 31, 2025, at 23:47 local time, with its epicenter in Kama district, approximately 30 kilometers northeast of Jalalabad (OCHA 01/09/2025). The earthquake was centered 27 kilometers east-northeast of Jalalabad near Kunar province, at a shallow depth of 8 kilometers, which significantly amplified its destructive impact (Al Jazeera 01/09/2025). The shallow hypocenter, combined with Afghanistan's location in a seismically active zone where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates converge, resulted in a maximum Modified Mercalli intensity of VII–VIII (Very strong–Severe) in the epicentral area (OCHA 01/09/2025). Nearly half a million people likely felt strong to very strong shaking, with several aftershocks, including events measuring magnitude 5.2, further complicating rescue operations (CNN 01/09/2025; USGS 01/09/2025). The earthquake affected four provinces - Kunar, Laghman, Nangarhar, and Nuristan - with casualties confirmed as at least 1109 deaths and 2,938 injured across deeply remote mountainous areas (ABC News 02/09/2025).
The earthquake has affected districts with concerning pre-existing vulnerabilities, which will likely increase the impact of the disaster in these areas. Chawkay and Dara-e-Pech districts, which ranked as the most vulnerable before the earthquake with 40.6% and 49% of their populations already requiring humanitarian assistance, suffered the most severe damage (see Table 1). The affected districts also showed growing vulnerabilities amongst children, with 58.9% to 61.5% of people in need being children under 18 years old across the most impacted areas (see Table 2).
Up to 12,000 people are directly affected by the disaster, with key access routes blocked by rocks and landslides, making some communities accessible only by foot with travel times up to three hours (OCHA 01/09/2025). The emergency response is severely constrained by a humanitarian system that was already failing, reaching only 14% of its targeted population before the earthquake occurred (see Table 5).
