Kabul: A powerful earthquake measuring 6.0 on the Richter scale struck eastern Afghanistan near the Pakistan border, killing more than 250 people and injuring over 100, officials confirmed. The quake, which occurred at a depth of 8 km in Kunar province around midnight, caused widespread destruction. Anadolu Agency reported the rising death toll, significantly higher than initial estimates of 20 fatalities. Authorities fear the numbers could climb further as rescue operations progress.
The Taliban government stated that hundreds of houses were reduced to rubble, with remote mountainous terrain complicating relief efforts. Officials appealed to humanitarian organizations for urgent support to assist the injured and displaced. Tremors were felt across Kabul, Pakistan’s capital Islamabad, and regions up to 300 km away, leaving residents in panic. Northern Afghanistan bore the brunt of the disaster, while neighboring Tajikistan also recorded mild tremors without casualties.
According to the National Seismology Centre, the epicenter was in Baghlan province, about 164 km east of Baghlan city, at a depth of 138 km, caused by tectonic plate movements. The European Mediterranean Seismological Centre confirmed the quake’s impact in Baghlan and surrounding towns including Baharak, Faizabad, and Dariya-e-Pishkan, where several houses were reported damaged. Residents rushed out of their homes in fear as aftershocks continued to rattle the region. This is the latest in a series of tremors in northern Afghanistan, following quakes of 5.1 and 4.9 magnitude earlier this month.