Summary

  • A magnitude 6.0 earthquake has struck eastern Afghanistan at a relatively shallow depth of 8km (6 miles)

  • Officials tell the BBC that at least 20 people have been killed and more than 100 are being treated at hospitals for injuries

  • Dozens of houses are "under rubble", say multiple sources from the Taliban government, and it is feared that the death toll could rise

  • Taliban government officials have urged humanitarian organisations to aid the rescue effort in remote mountainous areas - some are only accessible by air due to landslides and flooding

  • The quake has shaken buildings from Kabul to Pakistan's capital Islamabad - which is more than 300km (186 miles) away

Watch: People wounded in Afghanistan quake airlifted to Nangarhar airport

Live Reporting

Edited by Ayeshea Perera in Singapore with updates from Hafizullah Maroof from the BBC Afghan service

  1. In pictures: All hands on deck as rescuers try to reach affected people

    Here are scenes from the ongoing earthquake response in Afghanistan where the Taliban government is trying to send in help to affected areas.

    With roads blocked by landslides, rescue operations can only be carried out by air

    Men carry a person on a stretcher at an airport in AfghanistanTaliban Government

    Rescuers move an injured person our of a helicopter

    Military helicopter lands at the airport in AfghanistanTaliban government

    The government has been moving the injured to hospitals by air and land

    Men stand in fronf of three ambulances at an airport in AfghanistanTaliban government

    From the airport, ambulances move the injured to surrounding hsopitals

    Six vehicles in line in the nightTaliban government

    Th government says it has mobilised all resources

  2. Taliban government says hundreds feared dead in Kunar

    Hafizullah Maroof
    BBC Afghan Service

    I spoke to multiple sources in Kunar province, which was badly hit. All of them told me that “hundreds are dead” and many more are injured.

    A Taliban figure who is organising efforts to transport dead bodies by helicopters said that in one village 21 people have died and 35 are injured.

    Even now, aftershocks are being felt in many districts of the province, he added.

    Another Kunar province official said the "number of deaths is horrible".

    But at this stage, nobody can provide exact figures as the affected areas are remote and hard to reach.

    Mobile networks are not working in some areas, while in other parts roads have been cut off by landslides and flooding.

  3. Helicopters move injured people to hospitals

    Here are scenes from Afghanistan's Nangarhar Airport where Taliban government officials are deploying helicopters to airlift injured people in the remote Kunar province to hospitals.

    Watch: Helicopters leave Nangarhar Airport for quake hit Kunar province

  4. What we know so far

    Thank you for joining us as we bring you the latest from Afghanistan, where many are feared dead after an earthquake struck the country's mountainous eastern region. Here's what we know so far:

    • A 6.0-magnitude earthquake struck at 23:47 local time (19:17 GMT) on Sunday. The quake was shallow, with a depth of 8km (5 miles)
    • The earthquake's epicentre was 27km (17 miles) away from Jalalabad, the country's fifth-largest city
    • More than 20 people have died in the provinces of Nangarhar and Kunar, and more than 115 have been injured, local officials told the BBC
    • It's been hard to confirm the actual death toll due to how remote the affected areas are. Taliban government officials tell the BBC that "hundreds" are believed to have been killed or injured - but this has not been confirmed
    • With roads blocked by landslides, the police in Kunar province tells the BBC that rescue operations can only be carried out by air
    • The Taliban government has appealed for urgent help from international aid organisations
    • Helicopters carrying medical staff have arrived in Kunar province to treat and transport the wounded. Meanwhile in Nangahar province, dozens of volunteers have rushed to hospitals to donate blood

    We'll continue to bring you more updates as we get them - stick with us.

  5. How hard is it for aid to reach the area?

    Most of the damage from the earthquake is believed to be found in Kunar province, nearly 90% of its terrain is mountainous.

    Roads leading to the quake-hit areas are very narrow - and many of them have been blocked by landslides triggered by the earthquake.

    This complicates rescue efforts. At the moment, the only way to reach survivors is by helicopters.

    We saw similar difficulties during the 2022 earthquake, which killed some 1,000 people. Search and rescue efforts in remote villages were hampered by landslides, and had to be carried out by air.

  6. First wounded taken to hospital from quake-hit valley

    Hafizullah Maroof
    BBC Afghan Service

    Rescuers stand in a rowSupplied

    It is just past 6.30am in Afghanistan, and several of the wounded - including children - have been taken by helicopters from the quake hit Mazar valley in Kunar province, according to pictures and footage provided by the government.

    They show several injured people being moved from the helicopters to ambulances.

    Taliban defence officials involved in the rescue operation told me several villages have been completely destroyed and as many as “hundreds of people” are believed to be killed and wounded - just from this one valley. However, this toll has not been officially confirmed.

    It's hard to confirm the death toll immediately, as the quake-hit areas are remote and mountainous. As we've previously reported, the BBC has heard from several sources that entire villages in the region have been buried under rubble.

  7. Frequent aftershocks force hundreds to flee homes

    Hafizullah Maroof
    BBC Afghan Service

    Several residents in Kunar and Nangarhar provinces told me that they have felt multiple aftershocks last night.

    Polad Noori, 28, was standing on a street outside his home in Nangarhar province at midnight, due to the fear of aftershocks.

    He said he counted as many as 13 aftershocks and that hundreds of people have fled their homes to the streets.

    “I have never seen such a strong earthquake in my life,” he said.

  8. Four helicopters arrive in quake hit Valley
    Breaking

    Hafizullah Maroof
    BBC Afghan Service

    A helicopterSupplied

    Two sources in Kunar province tell me that at least four helicopters carrying medical staff arrived in Mazar valley in Kunar province early this morning.

    This is the most devastated area where roads have been blocked by landslides.

    The medical staff will first try to treat wounded, and the critically injured will be airlifted to the capital Kabul or nearby hospitals.

    However, given the scale of the devastation, officials say a lot more help would be urgently required.

  9. Why do so many devastating earthquakes happen in Afghanistan?

    Afghanistan is very prone to earthquakes because it is located on top of a number of fault lines where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates meet.

    In 2022, at least 1,000 people were killed and another 3,000 were injured when a 5.9-magnitude earthquake struck eastern Afghanistan - the deadliest such disaster in the country in two decades.

    While that earthquake had been of moderate magnitude, it was so destructive because it was shallow - happening at just 10km (6 miles) under the earth's surface.

    The depth of the quake on Sunday was even shallower, at 8km (5 miles). Hundreds are feared dead or wounded.

    Afghanistan's residents are also particularly vulnerable to earthquakes because the buildings there, built with timber, mud brick, or weak concrete, tend not to be earthquake resistant.

    A lot of damage from earthquakes in Afghanistan's mountains also comes from the landslides they cause, which can flatten houses and block rivers. Landslides also impact roads, which make it difficult for rescue workers and equipment to reach remote locations.

    Map of faultlines in Afghanistan

  10. Taliban government appeals for urgent help
    Breaking

    Hafizullah Maroof
    BBC Afghan Service

    Taliban government officials have urged aid organisations to aid the rescue effort in the remote mountainous areas.

    The police chief of Kunar province tells the BBC roads to the area are blocked due to landslides caused by flooding and quake aftershocks.

    He said rescue operations can only be carried out by air.

    The Taliban officials say they have limited resources and are requesting help from international organisations to provide helicopters to reach affected areas.

  11. Modelling suggests hundreds of possible deaths

    The US Geological Survey (USGS), a governmental department which monitors earthquakes, suggests hundreds of people could be killed in this quake.

    Modelling on its website estimates that "significant casualties are likely" as the disaster is potentially "widespread".

    The USGS notes that previous earthquakes in the region at the same alert level have required a regional or national level response.

    So far 20 people have been confirmed to be killed.

  12. Whole villages are under rubble
    Breaking

    Multiple sources from the Taliban government have told the BBC that “dozens of houses are under rubble” and it is now feared that hundreds of people could be killed and wounded in the earthquake. This has not been officially confirmed as yet.

    It is believed that mostly houses are damaged in Mazar valley, in the Norgal district of Kunar province which shares a border with Pakistan.

    The valley is located in a mountainous area.

    So far 20 people have been confirmed killed in the quake.

  13. Locals donate blood after province hit

    Hafizullah Maroof
    BBC Afghan Service

    Dozens of volunteers have rushed to hospitals to donate blood to victims in Nangahar province.

    So far nine people have been confirmed dead there.

    Taliban government deputy governor Azizullah Mustafa told the BBC that almost 30 people have been taken to hospitals in the district he oversees.

    The BBC also spoke to officials in Nangarhar and Kunar who said 115 people were in hospital in both provinces.

    A group of people gather at a hospital to donate blood

  14. Where did the earthquake strike?

    A map showing circles of different sizes demarcating the locations of the earthquakes in Afghanistan.US Geological Survey

    The 6.0-magnitude main shock marked in blue, with three more aftershocks in orange and red.

    Casualties are being reported in Nangarhar and Kunar provinces, in eastern Afghanistan bordering Pakistan.

    The earthquake's epicentre was 27km (17miles) away from Jalalabad, the capital of Nangarhar province and Afghanistan's fifth-largest city.

    The quake came after Nangarhar province was hit by flooding between Friday and Saturday, which devastated properties and killed five people, according to authorities.

    Tremors were felt 200km away in Kabul, as well as nearly 400km away in Pakistan's capital Islamabad, AFP reported.

    Earthquakes are common in Afghanistan, which sits on major fault lines where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates meet.

  15. More than 20 dead after earthquake in eastern Afghanistan

    More than 20 people have died after a 6.0-magnitude earthquake hit eastern Afghanistan, near its border with Pakistan, local officials have confirmed to the BBC.

    More than 115 injured people have been taken to hospitals in Nangarhar and Kunar provinces, the officials said.

    The shallow quake, with a depth of 8km (5 miles), struck at 23:47 local time (19:17 GMT) on Sunday, according to the US Geological Survey. Since then, there have been at least three aftershocks - with magnitudes ranging from 4.5 and 5.2.

    For several seconds the quake shook in Afghanistan's capital Kabul, around 200km away as well as Pakistan's capital Islamabad nearly 400km away, AFP reported.

    The death toll is expected to climb - the affected provinces are remote and have rugged terrain, and houses there are not generally earthquake-resistant.

    We'll continue to bring you the latest updates as we get them. Please stay with us.