Heavy rain and floods in Afghanistan kill 22, destroy hundreds of homes

Heavy rain and flooding has killed 22 people, destroyed hundreds of homes and
damaged crops in Afghanistan, which is already facing a humanitarian crisis, a
disaster management official said on Thursday.

The Taliban government, struggling to cope with the disaster that has affected
more than a third of its provinces, will approach international relief
organisations for help, officials said.

"Due to flooding and storms in 12 provinces, 22 people have died and 40
injured," said Hassibullah Shekhani, head of communications and information at
Afghanistan's National Disaster Management Authority.

The rain and flooding was particularly severe in the western provinces of
Badghis and Faryab and the northern province of Baghlan.

Afghanistan has been suffering from drought in recent years, made worse by
climate change, with low crop yields raising fears of serious food shortages.
The weather has exacerbated problems of poverty caused by decades of war and
then a drop in foreign aid and the freezing of assets abroad after the Taliban
took over, and U.S.-led forces withdrew, in August.

Shekhani said 500 houses were destroyed, 2,000 damaged, 300 head of livestock
killed and some 3,000 acres of crops damaged.

He said the International Committee of the Red Cross was helping and officials
would approach other international organisations for help.

The international community is grappling with how to help the country of some
40 million people without benefiting the Taliban.

with information from reuters.com