Over 800 killed, thousands injured as 6.0-magnitude quake devastates Afghanistan

A 6.0-magnitude earthquake struck eastern Afghanistan late on Aug 31 near the city of Jalalabad, according to data from the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and multiple sources.

The quake struck around midnight severely impacting north-eastern provinces of Kunar and Nangarhar, where authorities confirmed at least 812 fatalities and around 2,800 injuries, making this one of Afghanistan’s deadliest earthquakes in recent memory.

Reporter figures specify that over 600 deaths occurred in Kunar alone, while Nangarhar reported at least a dozen fatalities, underscoring the uneven devastation.

The Taliban-run administration deployed an emergency response involving helicopters, military and rescue teams, conducting at least 40 flights to evacuate the injured and recover the deceased. Authorities stated that 420 wounded and dead were transported out of the affected areas.

Several villages in Kunar were reported to be completely destroyed, and widespread infrastructure damage has hampered rescue operations. The region’s mountainous terrain and landslides have complicated access to remote areas.

The disaster compounds Afghanistan’s humanitarian challenges. International aid funding has declined significantly, dropping from $3.8 billion in 2022 to $767 million in 2025, stretching the country’s capacity to respond to emergencies.

While China has offered assistance, the UN has begun mobilizing emergency support, and local volunteers have contributed, including through blood donations.

Afghanistan’s seismic vulnerability stems from its location in the Hindu Kush region, where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates converge.

This area experiences frequent earthquakes, with four significant tremors already recorded earlier in 2025, making the current quake particularly devastating.

In October 2023, a series of 6.3-magnitude earthquakes struck Herat Province, resulting in approximately 2,445 deaths and over 9,400 injuries across several villages.

Earlier, in June 2022, a 5.9-magnitude earthquake hit the southeastern provinces of Paktika, Paktia, and Khost, causing between 1,052 and 1,163 fatalities and injuring over 1,600 individuals .