At least seven people were killed and 150 others injured after a powerful 6.3-magnitude earthquake struck Afghanistan on Monday, provincial authorities said.
The earthquake hit at a depth of 28 km near Mazar-e-Sharif, one of the country’s largest cities which has a population of about 523,000, the US Geological Survey said. The powerful tremors were caught on CCTV outside a house in a viral video, which India Today couldn’t verify.
“A total of 150 people injured and seven martyred have been reported and transferred to health centres as of this morning,” said Samim Joyanda, the spokesperson for the health department in Samangan, a mountainous northern province near Mazar-e Sharif told news agency Reuters.
The toll was based on hospital reports collected as of Monday morning, he said.
The earthquake destroyed part of the holy shrine of Mazar-i-Sharif, Balkh province spokesperson Haji Zaid said, referring to the Blue Mosque.
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.
More than 1,000 people died after an earthquake hit the country in August, according to the Afghan Red Crescent Society.
A magnitude 6.0 quake in eastern Afghanistan near the Pakistan border on August 31, 2025, killed more than 2,200 people.
On October 7, 2023, another 6.3-magnitude earthquake followed by strong aftershocks left at least 4,000 people dead, according to the Taliban government.
– Ends
(with inputs from Reuters)
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