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Agencies

A powerful 6.3-magnitude earthquake shook northern Afghanistan before dawn on Monday, killing at least 20 people and injuring more than 300 others, a health official said.
Sharafat Zaman, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Public Health, provided the updated death and injury toll.
The US Geological Survey said the quake’s epicentre was located 22km (14 miles) west-southwest of the town of Khulm, and that it struck at 12.59am at a depth of 28km.
The USGS issued an orange alert in its PAGER system, which is an automated system that produces information on the impact of earthquakes, and indicated that “significant casualties are likely, and the disaster is potentially widespread”.


Yousaf Hammad, a spokesman for Afghanistan’s disaster management agency, said most of the injured suffered minor wounds and were discharged after receiving initial treatment.
In the Afghan capital of Kabul, the Ministry of Defence announced that rescue and emergency aid teams had reached the areas affected by the earthquake in the provinces of Balkh and Samangan, which suffered the most damage, and have begun rescue operations, including transporting the injured and assisting affected families.
The Taliban government’s chief spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, in a post on social media said the earthquake hit Afghanistan’s Balkh, Samangan and Baghlan provinces, causing casualties and financial loss.
He expressed his sorrow and grief over the losses and said relevant governmental organisations were busy trying to get needed help to the people affected by the quake.
According to the Afghan officials, the earthquake was felt in Mazar-e Sharif, the capital of northern Balkh province.
In Mazar-e Sharif, footage circulating on social media showed damage to the historic Blue Mosque. Several bricks had fallen from the walls, but the mosque remained intact. The centuries-old site is one of Afghanistan’s most revered religious landmarks and a major gathering place during Islamic and cultural festivals.
The Blue Mosque is believed to be the burial site of the cousin and son-in-law of the Prophet Mohammad, Balkh province spokesperson Haji Zaid said.
The current structure was built in the 15th century.

The quake was also felt in Kabul and several other provinces in Afghanistan. The Defence Ministry said in a statement that a rockslide briefly blocked a main mountain highway linking Kabul with Mazar-e Sharif, but the road was later reopened.
It said some people who were injured and trapped along the highway were transported to the hospital.
Poor communication networks and infrastructure in mountainous Afghanistan have hampered disaster responses in the past, preventing authorities for hours or even days from reaching far-flung villages to assess the extent of the damage.
The United Nations in Afghanistan said on social media that Monday’s earthquake came just weeks after a deadly earthquake struck eastern Afghanistan. The UN said its teams were on the ground assessing needs and delivering urgent aid.
“We stand with the affected communities and will provide the necessary support,” the post said.
Afghanistan has been rattled by a series of earthquakes in recent years, and the impoverished country often faces difficulty in responding to such natural disasters, especially in remote regions.
Buildings tend to be low-rise constructions, mostly of concrete and brick, with homes in rural and outlying areas made from mud bricks and wood, many poorly built.

In August, a shallow 6.0-magnitude quake in the country’s east wiped out mountainside villages and killed more than 2,200 people.
Large tremors in western Herat, near the Iranian border, in 2023, and in eastern Nangarhar province in 2022 killed hundreds and destroyed thousands of homes.
Afghanistan is located on the edge of the Eurasian tectonic plate, which shares a transgression zone with the Indian plate – implying the two may converge or brush past each other – and is also influenced by the Arabian plate to its south, creating one of the world’s most tectonically active regions.
The northward movement of the Indian plate and its thrust against the Eurasian plate is usually responsible for Afghanistan’s numerous quakes.
Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters


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Earthquakes

Powerful earthquake kills at least 20 in Afghanistan, hundreds injured

A man being carried out of a vehicle following the earthquake. Photo: Afghan Red Crescent via Reuters

A rescuer at an unidentified location in Afghanistan. Photo: Afghan Red Crescent via Reuters

Rescuers at an unidentified location in Afghanistan. Photo: Afghanistan Ministry of Defence via Reuters

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Taliban government Defence Minister Mullah Yaqub Mujahid speaks via video conference from Doha, following ceasefire talks between Pakistan and Afghanistan, in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Sunday. Photo: EPA

Pakistani security officials and relatives attend the funeral of police officers killed in an explosion in Hangu, in Kohat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, on Friday. Photo: EPA

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Patients and their family members stay outside a hospital at the earthquake-hit Manay town, Davao Oriental province, southern Philippines, on October 11. Photo: AP

Business establishments that were damaged due to a recent strong earthquake lie at the Bogo city pier, Cebu province, Central Philippines on October 3. Photo: AP

Residents stay outside their homes for fear of aftershocks at earthquake-hit Bogo city, Cebu province, central Philippines on October 3. Photo: AP

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World

Russia & Central Asia

Tremor near Mazar-e Sharif comes just weeks after a devastating earthquake killed hundreds in the country’s east


Tremor near Mazar-e Sharif comes just weeks after a devastating earthquake killed hundreds in the country’s east.


Powerful earthquake kills at least 20 in Afghanistan, hundreds injured

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Tremor near Mazar-e Sharif comes just weeks after a devastating earthquake killed hundreds in the country’s east

Tremor near Mazar-e Sharif comes just weeks after a devastating earthquake killed hundreds in the country’s east