21 Injured in Road Accidents Received in Kabul Surgical Centre

• Afghanistan

In Afghanistan overnight, two road accidents occurred, involving two buses full of people. Local media report at least 50 deaths and dozens of injuries.

21 injured people were transported to our Surgical Centre in Kabul, and several others with less serious injuries arrived in our emergency room in the following hours. The most seriously injured, after emergency interventions, are now in intensive care.

The incidents took place in Ghazni province, along the road that connects Kabul to Kandahar. In Afghanistan, road traffic accidents are among the most frequent causes of trauma injuries. Since August 2021, the number of recorded accidents has increased fivefold.

Across the country, where access to care remains a challenge and the health system is largely inadequate, our facilities continue to be a point of reference for traumatology.

Road Traffic Accidents in Afghanistan

Since August 2021, the number of total road traffic accidents in the country has increased fivefold. In particular, between March 2022 and March 2024, recorded estimates show an increase from 2,662 to 5,520 accidents — an increase of 78.5%.

With the formal end of hostilities, many roads have reopened. However, they often remain in the condition they were left by the fighting, in need of improvement and restructuring.

Like other services, the transport sector was weakened by decades of war, forcing families to rely on private vehicles. However, travellers often do not have suitable vehicles, and widespread poverty means large numbers of people often crowd into the same vehicle to travel long distances and reach other areas of the country.

Between March 2022 and October 2024, most road traffic accidents involved vehicles ending up off the road, overturned or impacted against walls, in ravines and rivers. In addition to poor road conditions and high speeds, many accidents are also caused by landslides on the route and non-compliance with road regulations.

Data source: Kabulnow