A 6.3-magnitude earthquake in northern Afghanistan kills at least nine people and injures over 260, officials confirm
MAZAR-I-SHARIF: A powerful earthquake has killed at least nine people in northern Afghanistan according to authorities.
The 6.3-magnitude quake struck overnight at a depth of 28 kilometres with its epicentre near the city of Mazar-i-Sharif.
Four people died in Balkh province where Mazar-i-Sharif serves as the capital according to health department spokesman Kamal Khan Zadran.
He confirmed the provincial hospital was treating 120 people for injuries sustained during the tremor.
National Disaster Management Authority spokesman Mohammadullah Hamad reported five fatalities and 143 injuries in neighbouring Samangan province.
“Most of the injured have returned home after receiving treatment,” he stated.
Poor communication networks and infrastructure in mountainous Afghanistan have historically hampered disaster response efforts.
The earthquake prompted residents of Mazar-i-Sharif to flee their homes fearing structural collapse.
Correspondents in the capital Kabul approximately 420 kilometres to the south also reported feeling the tremors.
This marks the latest natural disaster for the Taliban government which has faced three major deadly earthquakes since 2021.
A shallow 6.0-magnitude quake in eastern Afghanistan killed more than 2,200 people last August.
Previous large tremors in western Herat in 2023 and eastern Nangarhar in 2022 killed hundreds and destroyed thousands of homes.
The United Nations and aid agencies have warned of rising hunger among Afghanistan’s population.
The isolated country suffers from a humanitarian crisis compounded by drought and economic restrictions.
Earthquakes occur frequently in Afghanistan particularly along the Hindu Kush mountain range.
Many homes in the war-devastated rural nation are poorly constructed making them vulnerable.
Remote villages often remain cut off from assistance for hours or days following disasters due to difficult terrain. – AFP
