Afghanistan Earthquake Anniversary | Difficulty in Reconstruction | US Unilateral Sanctions Intensify People's Suffering and Difficulty
On June 22, last year, a 6.2 magnitude earthquake occurred in the eastern province of Afghanistan, causing over a thousand deaths. However, under the shadow of US sanctions, there is a severe shortage of urgently needed aid materials in the disaster area, and post disaster reconstruction is even more difficult.
Shafiullah Rasimi, spokesperson for the National Disaster Management and Humanitarian Affairs Department of the Afghan Interim Government: In Paktika and Khost provinces, we have over 17000 damaged houses, which are partially or completely damaged. We have rebuilt 3000 houses, and the construction of over 6000 houses is currently underway. There are still many people without houses. Despite our efforts to help the most in need, it is still not enough, as many people do not have access to basic housing.
![Afghanistan Earthquake Anniversary | Difficulty in Reconstruction | US Unilateral Sanctions Intensify People's Suffering and Difficulty](https://a5qu.com/upload/images/7aa7385545dd07847e8f20e4be49393f.jpg)
Rasimi said that the earthquake has exacerbated the economic difficulties of the local people. For the past year, the interim government of Afghanistan has been committed to post disaster reconstruction work, but the unilateral sanctions imposed by the United States on Afghanistan and the freezing of $7 billion in overseas assets of the Central Bank of Afghanistan have brought great pressure to the reconstruction work. Afghanistan is facing severe material shortages, from essential items such as food and drinking water, pharmaceuticals, to building materials such as cement and steel bars, and economic reconstruction is even more difficult. Rasimi hopes that the United States can quickly lift the asset freeze and unilateral sanctions against Afghanistan.
Shafiullah Rasimi, spokesperson for the National Disaster Management and Humanitarian Affairs Department of the Afghan Interim Government: Our demand is that these frozen funds belong to the Afghan people, to the impoverished Afghan people. In the current difficult situation, we should help them instead of tormenting them through political games. I think the US sanctions directly affect them.
![Afghanistan Earthquake Anniversary | Difficulty in Reconstruction | US Unilateral Sanctions Intensify People's Suffering and Difficulty](https://a5qu.com/upload/images/a8b0fc01344a59b6162e3c205e611b91.jpg)