Twice Shattered: Afghan Returnees Endure Unfathomable Loss After Devastating Earthquakes

For many Afghan families, the journey home was supposed to be a fresh start, a return to the land they loved after years of displacement in neighboring countries. But for thousands of returnees in Afghanistan's Herat province, that hope has been brutally extinguished, not once, but twice. Having fled persecution or hardship, only to return and rebuild, they now face the crushing reality of losing everything yet again to a series of catastrophic earthquakes that have ravaged their nascent lives.

The devastating tremors, which began in early October, tore through Herat, claiming thousands of lives and leveling entire villages.

Yet, for returnees, the tragedy carries an additional, heartbreaking layer of cruelty. Many had just begun to piece their lives back together, having invested what little they had into constructing basic homes or finding a precarious livelihood. The earthquakes didn't just destroy their homes; they obliterated the fragile sense of security they had finally managed to cultivate.

Consider the plight of families like that of Sayed Karim.

After years as a refugee in Iran, he returned to Afghanistan with dreams of a stable future for his children. He invested his meager savings into a small mud-brick house in a village near Herat. “We lost everything in Iran, our dignity, our future. We thought coming back, we could build something here,” Karim recounts, his voice heavy with despair.

“Now, the earthquake took even that. We lost everything, twice.” His home, like so many others, was reduced to rubble, leaving his family, including young children, exposed to the elements and an uncertain future.

The humanitarian response, while present, has been critically insufficient for the sheer scale of the devastation, particularly for these vulnerable returnee communities.

Tents, food, and medical supplies are desperately needed, but the distribution is often slow, disorganized, or simply doesn't reach those most in need. Many returnees feel overlooked, their unique struggles compounded by a perceived lack of specific targeting in aid efforts. “We are forgotten people,” says Gulbuddin, another returnee from Pakistan, gesturing to the remnants of his former life.

“We came back seeking peace, but we found only more destruction and despair.”

Beyond the immediate crisis of shelter and food, there's a deeper, more insidious damage being done: the erosion of hope. These families have endured immense trauma and dislocation. The earthquakes, rather than being a standalone disaster, represent a cruel continuation of a cycle of loss that defines their lives.

They are not just earthquake victims; they are victims of relentless displacement, poverty, and now, natural disaster, all while navigating a complex geopolitical landscape.

The international community and local authorities face an immense challenge. Rebuilding goes beyond bricks and mortar; it means rebuilding trust, providing sustainable livelihoods, and ensuring that these doubly-displaced communities are not left behind.

Without focused and sustained support, the promise of returning home for many Afghans will remain a cruel illusion, forever shadowed by the specter of loss, not once, but twice.