Quakes kill over 2,000 in Afghanistan

HERAT, Afghanistan — The death toll from a series of earthquakes in western Afghanistan rose sharply on Sunday to more than 2,000 as rescuers scrabbled for survivors among the ruins of razed villages.

Saturday's magnitude-6.3 quake, followed by eight strong aftershocks, jolted hard-to-reach areas 35 kilometers northwest of the provincial capital of Herat, toppling rural homes and sending panicked city dwellers surging into the streets. It is one of the deadliest earthquakes to strike the country in 20 years.

Mullah Janan Sayeeq, a spokesman for the Ministry of Disasters, said 2,053 people were dead, 9,240 injured and 1,320 houses damaged or destroyed. The death toll spiked from 500 reported in the morning by the Red Crescent and 16 on Saturday night.

On Sunday, China's Foreign Ministry said in a statement that China mourns for the victims and offers sympathies to the injured and the bereaved families. A spokesperson confirmed in the statement that so far no injuries or deaths of Chinese nationals have been reported.

China will do its best to assist in Afghanistan's disaster-relief efforts, the spokesperson said.

"We believe the people of Afghanistan will overcome the impact of the disaster and rebuild their homes at an early date," the spokesperson said.

Four villages in the Zenda Jan district in Herat Province bore the brunt of the quake and aftershocks, disaster authority spokesperson Mohammad Abdullah Jan said.

The United States Geological Survey said the quake was followed by three strong aftershocks, with magnitudes of 6.3, 5.9 and 5.5, as well as lesser shocks.

Tremors felt

At least five strong tremors struck the city around noon, Herat city resident Abdul Shakor Samadi said.

"All people are out of their homes," Samadi said. "Houses, offices and shops are all empty and there are fears of more earthquakes. My family and I were inside our home, I felt the quake." His family began shouting and ran outside, afraid to return indoors.

The World Health Organization in Afghanistan said it dispatched 12 ambulance cars to Zenda Jan to evacuate casualties to hospitals.

"As deaths & casualties from the earthquake continue to be reported, teams are in hospitals assisting the treatment of wounded &assessing additional needs," the UN agency said on social media site X, formerly Twitter. "WHO-supported ambulances are transporting those affected, most of them women and children."

Telephone connections in Herat went down. Videos on social media showed hundreds of people on the streets outside their homes and offices in Herat city.

Neighboring Pakistan said it was deeply saddened by the earthquake. "Pakistan will extend all possible support to the recovery effort," the Foreign Affairs Ministry said.

Zhou Jin in Beijing contributed to this story.

Agencies - Xinhua