Afghanistan hit by 5.6-magnitude earthquake after over 2,200 killed

A 5.6-magnitude earthquake struck Afghanistan on Thursday, 4 September, with its epicentre located 14 km east of Jalalabad, the capital of Nangarhar province, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said.

The tremor, at a depth of 10 km, was also recorded by the GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences, which measured its intensity at 6.2.

The quake is the latest in a series of powerful tremors that have rattled Nangarhar and the neighbouring provinces of Kunar, Laghman, and Nuristan in recent days. The most devastating was a 6.0-magnitude quake late Sunday, which left more than 2,200 people dead and over 3,600 injured, with rescue teams still pulling bodies from the rubble.

Taliban government spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said earlier this week that at least 800 deaths and 2,500 injuries were confirmed in Kunar alone. The region’s vulnerable housing — often made of mud bricks, wood, and poorly constructed concrete — has worsened the scale of destruction.

The disaster has deepened Afghanistan’s humanitarian crisis. Filippo Grandi, UN high commissioner for refugees, urged international donors to step up aid, warning that the quake “adds death and destruction to other challenges including drought and the forced return of millions of Afghans from neighbouring countries”.

Afghanistan has faced a series of deadly earthquakes in recent years. In October 2023, a 6.3-magnitude quake killed at least 1,500 people, according to UN estimates, though Taliban authorities put the toll at 4,000. Aid agencies now warn that the current disaster could surpass those humanitarian needs.

With IANS inputs