More than 800 people killed, thousands injured in Afghanistan earthquake

More than 800 people have been killed in an earthquake in Afghanistan, according to the country's authorities. Thousands of people have been injured or remain under the rubble, which may increase the number of victims. The magnitude 6 earthquake was one of the strongest in Afghanistan's history, according to Reuters.

More than 800 people have been killed in an earthquake in Afghanistan, with at least 2,800 injured, Reuters reported citing the country's authorities. The magnitude 6 earthquake struck around midnight local time at a depth of 10 kilometers. Reuters called it one of the worst in Afghanistan's history.

812 people have died in the eastern provinces of Kunar and Nangarhar, said a Taliban official, Reuters reported. The representative of the country's Health Ministry called for international assistance to Afghanistan in overcoming the consequences of the earthquake.

Rescuers are having difficulty reaching mountainous areas along the border with Pakistan, where cell phone service is not working and where many mud-brick houses dotting the slopes have collapsed, Reuters reported. Many people remain under the rubble, which could still increase the death toll, Taliban administration spokesman Zabiullah Muhajid told The Wall Street Journal.

Earthquakes are not uncommon in Afghanistan because the country sits on several fault lines caused by the interaction of the Eurasian, Arabian and Indian lithospheric plates, The Wall Street Journal noted. In October 2023, for example, two powerful earthquakes killed at least 2,400 people.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor