Briefly

AFGHANISTAN

Quake kills 13, nine of them in Pakistan

At least 13 people were killed and more than 90 injured in Pakistan and Afghanistan after a magnitude-6.5 earthquake struck late on Tuesday, government officials said. At least nine people were killed and 44 injured in northwest Pakistan, a Pakistani government official said, and hospitals in northern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province were put into a state of emergency overnight. At least four people were killed and 50 injured in Afghanistan, a health ministry official there said.

GERMANY

ECB chief warns of financial tensions

Recent financial turbulence could add to "downside risks" in the eurozone, European Central Bank chief Christine Lagarde warned on Wednesday, while insisting policymakers remain focused on taming sky-high inflation. The collapse of three regional US lenders and the enforced UBS buyout of Swiss rival Credit Suisse plunged global markets into turmoil and triggered fears of a snowballing crisis.

Agencies via Xinhua