An earthquake measuring 6.1 on the Richter scale killed at least 280 people in Afghanistan on Wednesday, an official said, adding that at least hundreds were injured and checks were being carried out to see if the death toll could rise.
The quake occurred about 44 kilometers from the city of Khost, near the Pakistani border, at a depth of 51 kilometers, the US Geological Survey said.
The quake was felt by some 119 million people in Pakistan, Afghanistan and India, the European Seismological Center said on social media.
Photographs published by the Afghan media showed houses reduced to rubble.
The Taliban government’s head of natural disaster management, Mohammad Nassim Haqqani, said most of the deaths occurred in Paktika province, where 100 people died and 250 were injured.
Another 25 people were killed in Khost and five in Nangarhar province, he said, adding that investigations were being conducted to determine if there were any more casualties.
There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties in Pakistan.
The disaster comes as Afghanistan has been facing a severe economic crisis since the Taliban took power in August last year, when US-led international forces withdrew from the country after two decades of war.
In response to the Taliban takeover, many governments have imposed sanctions on Afghanistan’s banking sector and cut billions of dollars in financial aid.
Source: CNN Brasil
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