More than 800 people have been killed and at least 2,800 injured after a 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck Afghanistan, a spokesperson for the country’s Taliban government has said.
Health authorities in the capital Kabul, however, said the numbers could change as they worked to reach remote areas.
The earthquake struck the country’s northeastern province of Kunar near the Pakistan border at 11.47pm local time (8.17pm UK time) on Sunday, the German Research Centre for Geosciences said.
The quake’s epicentre was near Jalalabad, Nangarhar province, at a depth of 8.7 miles (14km). Jalalabad is situated about 74 miles (119km) from Kabul.
There was a second earthquake in the same province about 20 minutes later, with a magnitude of 4.5 and a depth of 6.2 miles (10km). This was later followed by a 5.2 earthquake at the same depth.
“All our… teams have been mobilised to accelerate assistance, so that comprehensive and full support can be provided,” interior ministry spokesperson Abdul Maten Qanee told Reuters news agency, citing efforts in areas from security to food and health.
Homes of mud and stone were levelled by the midnight quake and several villages completely destroyed in Kunar province, officials said.
Rescuers searched for survivors in several districts of the mountainous province where the quake hit.
Images showed helicopters ferrying aid out to the affected, and residents helping soldiers and medics carry the wounded to ambulances.
Footage from Nangarhar province showed people frantically digging through rubble with their hands, searching for loved ones in the dead of night.
Hundreds of injured people have been taken to hospital, a local official said, with figures likely to rise.
Ziaul Haq Mohammadi, a student at Al-Falah University in Jalalabad, was studying in his room at home when the quake struck. He said he was knocked over by the power of the tremor.
“We spent the whole night in fear and anxiety because at any moment another earthquake could happen,” he said.
Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban government’s chief spokesman, said: “Sadly, tonight’s earthquake has caused loss of life and property damage in some of our eastern provinces.
“Local officials and residents are currently engaged in rescue efforts for the affected people. Support teams from the centre and nearby provinces are also on their way.”
He added “all available resources will be utilised to save lives”.
According to earlier reports, 30 people were killed in a single village.
“The number of casualties and injuries is high, but since the area is difficult to access, our teams are still on site,” said health ministry spokesperson Sharafat Zaman.
Earlier, an Afghan foreign office spokesperson said “no foreign governments have reached out to provide support for rescue or relief work”.
Later, India said it had delivered 1,000 family tents to Kabul and was moving 15 tonnes of food material to Kunar, with more aid to be sent on Tuesday. A spokesperson for China’s foreign ministry said it was ready to provide disaster relief assistance “according to Afghanistan’s needs and within its capacity”.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said its mission in Afghanistan was preparing to help those in areas devastated by the quake.
Filippo Grandi, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, described the disaster as “a perfect storm”.
He told Sky News: “It is very tragic. We have very little information as of yet, but already reports of hundreds of people killed and many more made homeless.
“It is a country that is already suffering from a multiplicity of crises – there is a big drought, Iran has sent back almost two million people, Pakistan is trying to do the same with Afghans living there – and of course, it is extremely difficult to mobilise resources because of the Taliban.
“It’s a perfect storm, and this earthquake, likely to have been quite devastating, is just going to add to the misery. So, a strong appeal to all of those who can help.”
Kate Carey, an officer at the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), warned of the risk of landslides due to heavy rainfall in affected areas.
She also said the shrinking of funding for Afghanistan, led by US aid cuts, was hampering the response to the quake.
Ms Carey said: “The actual delivery of response has been badly hit by the funding cuts this year, but also the number of people we have on the ground is much less than we would have had six months ago.” (SkyNews)
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