Afghanistan floods devastate villages, killing 315

Flash floods caused by heavy rains have devastated villages in northern Afghanistan, killing 315 people and injuring more than 1,600, authorities said on Sunday, as villagers buried their dead and aid agencies warned of widening havoc.

Thousands of homes were damaged and livestock wiped out, the Taliban-run refugee ministry said, while aid groups warned of damage to healthcare facilities and vital infrastructure, such as water supply, with streets left coated in mud.

In the Nahrin district of Baghlan province, people carried their shrouded dead to a grave site.

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"We have no food, no drinking water, no shelter, no blankets, nothing at all, floods have destroyed everything," said Muhammad Yahqoob, who has lost 13 members of his family, children among them.

The survivors were struggling to cope, he added.

"Out of 42 houses, only two or three remain, it has destroyed the entire valley."

In a statement, the Taliban's economy minister, Din Mohammad Hanif, urged the United Nations, humanitarian agencies and private business to provide support for those hit by the floods.

"Lives and livelihoods have been washed away," said Arshad Malik, the Afghanistan director for Save the Children. "The flash floods tore through villages, sweeping away homes and killing livestock."

He estimated that 310,000 children lived in the worst-hit districts, adding, "Children have lost everything."

• Afghanistan floods: Death toll rises to 153, 138 injured, says Taliban