FAIZABAD, Afghanistan: Four miners in northern Afghanistan were suffocated to death by fumes this week while digging for gemstones, a local official told AFP on Saturday.
“The incident occurred in Khash District of Badakhshan province where four workers at a mine died,” Ehsanullah Kamgar, the spokesman for Badakhshan’s police told AFP, adding the deaths occurred on Friday.
The miners were searching for precious stones underground and “died due to suffocation caused by fumes emitted from a stone-crushing machine,” he added.
Authorities did not respond to AFP’s request for comment on whether the mine was operating officially or illegally.
Afghanistan mines marble, minerals, gold, and precious stones as well as coal.
Resources, including copper and lithium, buried across Afghanistan’s rocky landscape are estimated to be worth a trillion dollars, according to US and UN assessments from 2010 and 2013.
Fatal accidents are frequent and miners often work without adequate equipment or safety gear.
In July 2025, six miners were killed and 18 injured in a coal mine collapse in the northern province of Baghlan.
Four killed in mine accident in northern Afghanistan
https://arab.news/nggcs
Four killed in mine accident in northern Afghanistan
- “The incident occurred in Khash District of Badakhshan province ,” Kamgar said
- The miners were searching for precious stones underground
94 million need cataract surgery, but access lacking: WHO
- Of the 94 million affected, fewer than 20 percent are blind, while the rest suffer from impaired vision
GENEVA: More than 94 million people suffer from cataracts, but half of them do not have access to the surgery needed to fix it, the World Health Organization said Wednesday.
Cataracts — the clouding of the eye’s lens that causes blurred vision and can lead to blindness — are on the rise as populations get older, with age being the main risk factor.
“Cataract surgery — a simple, 15-minute procedure — is one of the most cost-effective medical procedures, providing immediate and lasting restoration of sight,” the WHO said.
It is one of the most frequently performed surgeries undertaken in high-income countries.
However, “half of the world’s population in need of cataract surgery don’t have access to it,” said Stuart Keel, the UN health agency’s technical lead for eye care.
The situation is worst in the WHO’s Africa region, where three in four people needing cataract surgery remain untreated.
In Kenya, at the current rate, 77 percent of people needing cataract surgery are likely to die with their cataract blindness or vision impairment, said Keel.
Across all regions, women consistently experience lower access to care than men.
Of the 94 million affected, fewer than 20 percent are blind, while the rest suffer from impaired vision.
- 2030 vision -
The WHO said that over the past two decades, global cataract surgery coverage had increased by 15 percent.
In 2021, WHO member states set a target of a 30-percent increase by 2030.
However, current modelling predicts that cataract surgery coverage will rise by only about 8.4 percent this decade.
To close the gap, the WHO urged countries to integrate eye examinations into primary health care and invest in the required surgical equipment.
States should also expand the eye-care workforce, training surgeons in a standardised manner and then distributing them throughout the country, notably outside major cities.
The WHO was on Wednesday launching new guidance for countries on how to provide quality cataract surgery services.
It will also issue guidance to help support workforce development.
Keel said the main issue was capacity and financing.
“We do need money invested to get rid of this backlog, which is nearly 100 million people,” he told a press conference.
While age is the primary risk factor for cataracts, others include prolonged UV-B light exposure, tobacco use, prolonged corticosteroid use and diabetes.
Keel urged people to keep up regular eye checks as they get older, with most problems able to be either prevented or diagnosed and treated.
The cost of the new lens that goes inside the eye can be under $100.
However, out-of-pocket costs can be higher when not covered by health insurance.
“Cataract surgery is one of the most powerful tools we have to restore vision and transform lives,” said Devora Kestel, head of the WHO’s noncommunicable diseases and mental health department.
“When people regain their sight, they regain independence, dignity, and opportunity.”
