KABUL—The Taliban said they wouldn’t interfere with Afghan government efforts to deliver assistance to earthquake victims, raising the prospect of an informal cease-fire while relief efforts are under way.
“We don’t want to fight in areas hit by the earthquake,” Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said by phone Wednesday, two days after a 7.5-magnitude temblor struck the remote Hindu Kush region in northeast Afghanistan. “If the enemies go to areas affected by the earthquake to help people, we will not attack them. We don’t want to create problems for the aid process.”
Government officials said no security problems have interfered with rescue-and-relief efforts in areas worst-hit by Monday’s quake, which killed nearly 400 people—at least 115 in Afghanistan and 267 in neighboring Pakistan—and destroyed thousands of homes in both countries.
“We are not concerned about security,” Afghan government spokesman Javid Faisal said. “This is a humanitarian mission, and we call on the armed opposition to not create obstacles.”
More than 34,000 people have been displaced in Afghanistan, according to the International Organization for Migration, a United Nations affiliate.
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