More than $400 million needed for western Afghanistan to recover from October earthquake, UN says

More than $400 million is needed for western Afghanistan to recover and rebuild after a devastating earthquake last October that killed around 2,000 people, the United Nations said Wednesday. The magnitude 6.3 quake on Oct. 7, one of the most destructive in the country's recent history, flattened entire villages in Herat province and also left thousands injured and homeless. In a new U.N. report, released together with the World Bank, the European Union and the Asian Development Bank, estimated there is "an urgent need for $402.9 million to support the critical recovery and reconstruction efforts in the province.”