Magnitude 6.1 Earthquake Strikes Southeastern Afghanistan... "Over 150 Dead"

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck near the border between southeastern Afghanistan and Pakistan, reportedly killing up to 150 people.

According to the Associated Press on the 22nd (local time), a magnitude 6.1 earthquake occurred in Paktika Province in southeastern Afghanistan, resulting in at least 155 deaths. Mohammad Nasim Hakani, head of the Taliban's disaster management department, told foreign media, "More than 130 people have died due to this earthquake," adding, "In Paktika Province alone, 100 people have died and more than 250 were injured."

Earlier, the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) announced that the earthquake struck southeastern Afghanistan at 1:24 a.m., with the epicenter located just 36 km from the city of Khost, which has a population of 96,000. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) reported the earthquake's magnitude as 5.9.

This strong earthquake was felt not only in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, but also in distant locations such as Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, and Punjab. In January, Afghanistan experienced consecutive earthquakes of magnitudes 4.9 and 5.6 in the western region, resulting in more than 28 deaths.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.