KABUL — At least 25 people have died after a landslide caused by heavy snow swept through a village in Afghanistan.

So far, eight people are known to have been injured in the incident, and there are fears the death toll may rise.

Officials say the weather has hampered rescue efforts, with helicopters unable to land and snow blocking the roads.

Those who have managed to reach the village in the eastern province of Nuristan were forced to use shovels and axes to dig through the rubble.

Jamiullah Hashimi, the provincial head of information and culture, told news agency AFP that snow was continuing to fall even as people were trying to reach potential survivors in the village of Nakre.

He added that "modern equipment, tools, and facilities are not available for the rescue operation".

Janan Sayeq, a spokesman for Afghanistan's disaster management ministry, said in a video posted to X (formerly Twitter) that 25 had died. He added that about 15 to 20 homes had either been completely or partially destroyed in the night-time incident.

Landslides, avalanches and other disasters are not uncommon in Nuristan, a mountainous region covered in forests near the border with Pakistan.

More than 50 people were killed in an avalanche in the province back in 2017, while in 2021 dozens of people were killed in flash flooding in Nuristan. — BBC