Severe Winter Weather Claims More Lives In Afghanistan

Nineteen people have been reported killed as a result of extreme winter weather in parts of Afghanistan, officials said.

Officials told RFE/RL on January 12 that the victims were killed the previous day in Herat, Kandahar, and Helmand provinces amid heavy snowfall and low temperatures.

The overall death toll from this year’s cold snap now stands at 24, and officials cautioned it could rise further.

Temperatures fell to minus 12 degrees Celsius in parts of the country on January 11.

“We are now expecting more cold waves in the coming weeks,” Mohammad Nasim Muradi, head of the forecasting section of the government meteorological service, told Reuters.

Heavy snow has closed many major roads since the beginning of the year, including the Salang Tunnel and the Kabul-Kandahar Highway.

With reporting by Reuters