INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
A top UN official in Afghanistan appealed on Sunday for greater international aid for the country, after he visited communities affected by
last week&s devastating earthquake.Yesterday&s visit reaffirmed to me both the extreme suffering of people in Afghanistan and their
tremendous resolve in the face of great adversity,& said Ramiz Alakbarov, Deputy Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General and
Humanitarian Coordinator for Afghanistan.The UN and its partners have developed a three-month emergency appeal, included within their
humanitarian plan for Afghanistan this year, to respond to the catastrophe.The goal is to scale up and expedite the delivery of humanitarian
and resilience assistance to nearly 362,000 people in the two provinces, Paktika and Khost, that were most affected.Notwithstanding the
phenomenal generosity that donors have already displayed to Afghanistan over these past tumultuous ten months, I urge the international
community to dig deep at this time, as the population confronts yet another emergency, and to pledge support to these life-saving and
life-sustaining efforts,& he said.On Saturday, Alakbarov, accompanied by representatives from other UN agencies, travelled to the villages
of Mir Sahib and Khanadin, located in Gayan district, Paktika province & one of the areas worst affected by the 6.1 magnitude
earthquake.More than 1,000 people are reported killed and another 2,000 injured in the earthquake in east Afghanistan
According to UN data, 235 people were killed and 600 others were injured in Gayan district alone.The delegation met with residents, many of
whom had lost family members and friends, including several orphaned and separated children, and whose homes are now uninhabitable.In
addition to food assistance and emergency shelter and repair, interventions such as the restoration of damaged water pipes and cholera
prevention and preparedness activities are absolutely vital, as are the restoration of communication lines, road access, and basic
livelihoods,& said Alakbarov.Without such transitional support, women, men, and children will continue to endure unnecessary and
unimaginable hardship,& he added.The post UN official appeals foreign greater int&l aid after visit to quake-hit region first appeared on
