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At Least 200 Dead in Afghan Avalanches


Afghanistan is struggling to reach people trapped and injured by a string of avalanches caused by heavy snow in recent days.

More than 200 people have died with at least 165 deaths reported in the Panjshir Province, northeast of the capital, Kabul, officials say.

"Helicopters are dropping medicines, blankets and other necessary items to remote areas of the Panjshir, where the roads remain impassable because of the heavy snow," said Mohammad Aslam Syas, deputy chief of the Afghanistan National Disaster Management Authority.

The death count is expected to rise because of the severe snow conditions, authorities say.

Local officials say they have not seen this much snow in 30 years.

The snow storms follow what had been a dry winter which many Afghanis feared would lead to a drought.

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