A 6.0-magnitude quake struck Kunar Province in the eastern part of the country late on Sunday

At least 800 people have been killed and over 2,800 injured after a powerful 6.0-magnitude earthquake hit eastern Afghanistan late on Sunday, the country's Information Ministry has said, noting that the death toll is likely to rise.

The quake is reported to have struck at around midnight local time (GMT+4:30), with its epicenter near the city of Jalalabad in Afghanistan's Kunar Province, about 120km east of Kabul, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS). The initial quake was soon followed up with a 4.5-magnitude aftershock and another 5.2-magnitude earthquake.

"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," spokesman of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, Zabihullah Mujahid, said on X, adding that all available resources will be mobilized to save lives.

In Kunar, one of the hardest-hit provinces, houses collapsed and whole villages have reportedly been flattened. "Children are under the rubble. The elderly are under the rubble. Young people are under the rubble," a villager from the region has told the media, pleading for people to come help pull out those who have been trapped.

Casualties have been reported across the Nur Gal, Sawki, Watpur, Manogi and Chapa Dara districts, the information ministry noted, adding that figures remain preliminary due to difficulties reaching remote areas in the mountainous region.

Military helicopters and rescue teams are intensifying efforts to evacuate the injured and deliver aid. With mountain passes cut off and communications disrupted, officials warned that the full scale of the devastation may take days to assess.

Taliban officials have appealed to international aid organizations to urgently provide medical supplies, tents, and rescue equipment. Iran has already offered to send humanitarian aid.

The disaster comes less than two years after a series of powerful tremors in Herat Province killed more than 2,400 people in October 2023, one of Afghanistan's deadliest quakes in recent history.

(RT.com)