A powerful earthquake has struck eastern Afghanistan, killing at least 500 people and injuring more than 1,000, state-run Radio Television Afghanistan (RTA) reported Monday.
The 6.0-magnitude tremor hit at a shallow depth of 8km, with tremors felt in Kabul and as far as Islamabad, more than 300 kilometres from the epicentre.
Taliban-led health authorities said the final toll has yet to be confirmed, warning that the number of casualties could rise as rescue teams reach remote areas. Entire villages were reported destroyed, with homes buried under rubble and landslides cutting off access to several communities.
Witnesses described scenes of devastation, with residents trapped under debris and emergency crews struggling to reach the hardest-hit areas.
The disaster is among the deadliest earthquakes to strike Afghanistan in recent years, compounding the country’s ongoing humanitarian crisis. Officials said it may take days to determine the full scale of the destruction.
