Kabul, Afghanistan, January 7, 2026 — The International Rescue Committee (IRC) is saddened to confirm the death of a staff member in Afghanistan who was killed in a road traffic accident today in Islam Qala while returning home from duty. Two other staff members have been seriously injured and have been taken to hospital where they are receiving treatment.
The IRC is devastated by the loss of our colleague - frontline staff are at the core of the IRC’s mission and critical in reaching clients who are most in need, particularly in Afghanistan where many communities live in remote and hard to reach areas.
We are working to support the family of our deceased colleague, our staff who were injured and their families, as well as the wider team at this time.
About the IRC in Afghanistan
The International Rescue Committee (IRC) began work in Afghanistan in 1988 and now works with thousands of villages across nine provinces. As Afghanistan struggles to recover from years of conflict and natural disasters, the IRC works with local communities to identify, plan and manage their own development projects, provides safe learning spaces in rural areas, basic health services to remote and hard to access communities, cash distribution provides uprooted families with tents, clean water, sanitation and other basic necessities, and helps people find livelihood opportunities as well as extensive resilience programming.