Afghanistan Flash Floods Leave Over 30 Dead

Flash floods in central Afghanistan have killed more than 30 people and left dozens missing, according to local officials.

The country's disaster management body told German news agency DPA that at least 31 people had died in the past 72 hours.

A large number of deaths occurred in the central province of Maidan Wardak, where flood waters rose while many people were asleep.

Ministry of Disaster Management spokesman Mohammad Shafi Rahimi said 26 of the deaths occurred in Jalars district, 46 km east of Kabul. 

Heavy rains caused floods that washed away or destroyed hundreds of homes, most of them built from the earth. At least four others died in Kabul itself.

In a statement, the Taliban government called on relief agencies to help provide emergency assistance, while offering condolences to the families of the victims.

Last year, an exceptionally strong monsoon caused various flash floods in eastern and Afghanistan, killing hundreds of people.

The UN says Afghanistan is highly vulnerable to natural disasters, with the pace and intensity of climate change amplified.