WHO asks Taliban to lift female aid worker restrictions following deadly earthquakes

The World Health Organization (WHO) has called on the Taliban to immediately lift restrictions on Afghan women aid workers, warning that the ban is crippling relief operations in areas devastated by last week’s powerful earthquake.

The death toll from the massive earthquake that struck eastern Afghanistan late Sunday has risen to nearly 1,000, officials confirmed Tuesday, with fears the figure could climb higher as rescue operations continue in remote, mountainous regions.

A powerful earthquake measuring 6.0 on the Richter scale has devastated eastern Afghanistan, killing at least 622 people and injuring over 1,500, according to state-run broadcaster Radio Television Afghanistan (RTA).

As a government-imposed deadline expired on Sunday, Iran has directed millions of Afghan migrants and refugees residing within its borders to leave or alternatively, face arrest. 

The Taliban administration has launched a nationwide campaign to purge `un-Islamic` and anti-government literature from circulation in Afghanistan. This initiative involves scrutinizing imported books, removing contentious texts from libraries, and issuing lists of banned publications. 

Over the span of three days heavy rains and subsequent flash flooding have led to the loss of at least 33 lives in Afghanistan, as reported by the government`s disaster management department.

Tragedy struck on Monday as eight individuals, including women and children, lost their lives in what has been described as "reckless" air strikes conducted by the Pakistan military in the border areas of Afghanistan, according to a statement by a spokesman for the Taliban government.

A devastating landslide triggered by heavy snowfall has resulted in the loss of 25 lives and left eight individuals injured in the eastern Afghan province of Nuristan, according to statements from a spokesman for the disaster management ministry on Monday. 

Khurma had to borrow her neighbour`s shoes to walk to Pul-e Alam city to collect a cash handout being given to the growing number of vulnerable Afghans who are struggling to survive the winter.

A recent report by the BBC has highlighted the plight of approximately 200 Afghan special forces members who were trained and supported by the United Kingdom and now face the prospect of being sent back to their Taliban-controlled homeland.

Afghanistan`s interim Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi is set to assume the responsibilities of the deputy prime minister on a temporary basis, as reported by local media.

Pakistan must solve its domestic problems on its own and not blame Afghanistan for its failures, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said in a statement Wednesday, responding to Islamabad’s charges that militants attacks in Pakistan.

A recent United Nations report has revealed a staggering 95% reduction in opium poppy production in Afghanistan, previously the world`s leading supplier, after the Taliban administration implemented a ban on narcotics cultivation last year.

As the November 1 deadline set by Pakistan for undocumented migrants to leave the country approached, Muhammad Rahim embarked on a bus journey from Karachi to the Afghan border. Rahim, a 35-year-old Afghan national, had spent his entire life in Pakistan, having been born there.

The Pakistani government has given its approval for the establishment of multiple deportation centers to address the issue of hundreds of thousands of Afghan nationals residing illegally in the country. Pakistan is preparing to apprehend and repatriate these individuals to Afghanistan, with the process scheduled to begin next month.

Early on Wednesday, a significant 6.3 magnitude earthquake jolted the western province of Herat in Afghanistan, as reported by the US Geological Survey.