A powerful earthquake in Afghanistan has left at least 622 people dead and more than 1,500 injured, according to the country’s Taliban-led Ministry of Interior. The quake, measuring 6.0 on the Richter scale, struck at 11:47 PM local time on Sunday in the remote northeastern province of Kunar, near the Pakistan border.
Reports from the Ministry of Health, cited by Sky News, confirm that at least three villages have been completely destroyed, while several others suffered extensive damage.
Afghanistan is highly vulnerable to earthquakes as it lies on multiple fault lines where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates meet. In 2022, a magnitude 5.9 quake killed over 1,000 people and injured around 3,000 in eastern Afghanistan — one of the country’s worst natural disasters in the past two decades.
Although Sunday’s quake was of moderate strength, it became devastating due to its shallow depth of only 8 km (5 miles). For comparison, the 2022 quake had a depth of 10 km (6 miles). The shallow depth made the tremors more destructive, collapsing poorly built houses made of mud, wood, and weak concrete.
Landslides in Afghanistan’s mountainous areas further worsen the damage, often burying homes under rubble and blocking roads. This makes it extremely difficult for rescuers and relief equipment to reach affected communities in time.
Experts warn that Afghanistan remains highly prone to earthquake disasters due to both its geography and fragile infrastructure.
