Deadly 6.3 magnitude earthquake hits northern Afghanistan

A 6.3-magnitude earthquake struck near the northern Afghan city of Mazar-e Sharif early on Monday, killing at least seven people and injuring about 150, provincial authorities said on Monday.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake hit at a depth of 28 kilometres near Mazar-e Sharif, which has a population of about 523,000.

“A total of 150 people injured and seven martyred have been reported and transferred to health centers as of this morning,” said Samim Joyanda, spokesperson for the health department in Samangan, a mountainous northern province near Mazar-e Sharif.

The toll was based on hospital reports collected as of Monday morning, he said.

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.”

Past events with this alert level have required a regional or national level response, the system’s alert added.

The earthquake destroyed part of the holy shrine of Mazar-e Sharif, Balkh province spokesperson Haji Zaid said, referring to the blue mosque.

The country’s national disaster management agency said reports on casualties and damage would be shared later. Reuters could not immediately verify the extent of damage from the earthquake.

Videos of rescue efforts being carried out to save people trapped under rubble and images of fallen debris in buildings were shared on the social media platform X. One video showed rescuers pulling what appeared to be dead bodies from rubble.

Reuters could not immediately verify the footage and the images.

Thousands died and thousands more were injured after an earthquake and a series of aftershocks hit Afghanistan in August, the Taliban administration said.

Afghanistan is especially vulnerable to earthquakes as the country is located on two major active faults that have the potential to rupture and cause extensive damage.

In 2015, an earthquake struck northeastern Afghanistan, killing several hundred people in Afghanistan and nearby northern Pakistan. Another in 2023 killed at least 1,000 people.