Avalanches on a mountain get ahead of north Kabul have killed at least 28 people, with another 1,500 trapped in their vehicles on snow-blocked roads.
The Afghan Defense Ministry released a statement saying another 70 people have been injured and transported to hospitals as the military and police continued rescue efforts to dig out those trapped in the snow.
The avalanches took place Monday subsequent heavy snows in the Salang Pass that links the Afghan capital with the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif.
In a statement, Karzai ordered the ministries of public works, defense and disaster control to "use all possible means to get the roads unblocked and rescue those trapped and stranded in the heavy snow."
About 100 Afghan soldiers were mobilized to join police and others in the rescue hard work, along with four helicopters, a number of ambulances and several bulldozers.
Rescuers worked throughout the night to save more than 200 people.
Military helicopters were tumbling food packages to people jammed on snow-blocked roads.
Earlier, Afghan reports said some 300 cars and buses were trapped on the mountain pass.
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