Afghanistan: At least 7 killed, over 150 injured in 6.3-magnitude quake; Mazar-i-Sharif shrine partly destroyed

At least seven people were killed and 150 injured after an earthquake of magnitude 6.3 struck Afghanistan on Sunday.According to the United States Geological Survey, the earthquake hit at a depth of 28 km (17.4 miles) near Mazar-e Sharif, which has a population of about 523,000.“A total of 150 people injured and seven martyred have been reported and transferred to health centres as of this morning,” spokesperson for the health department Samim Joyanda told news agency Reuters.The toll was based on hospital reports collected as of Monday morning, he said.Meanwhile, the earthquake also destroyed part of the holy shrine of Mazar-i-Sharif, Balkh province spokesperson Haji Zaid told Reuters.The USGS issued an orange alert in its PAGER system, which is an automated system that produces information on the impact of earthquakes, and indicated that “significant casualties are likely and the disaster is potentially widespread”.Past events with this alert level have required a regional or national level response, the system’s alert added.Earlier in August, thousands died and thousands more were injured after earthquake and a series of aftershocks hit AfghanistanAfghanistan is especially vulnerable to earthquakes as the country is located on two major active faults that have the potential to rupture and cause extensive damage.Large tremors in western Herat, near the Iranian border, in 2023, and in eastern Nangarhar province in 2022 killed hundreds and destroyed thousands of homes.The United Nations and aid agencies have warned hunger is rising in the Afghan population and the isolated country is suffering from a humanitarian crisis compounded by drought, economic restrictions on the banking sector, and the pushback of millions of Afghan citizens from neighbouring Iran and Pakistan.Earthquakes are common in Afghanistan, particularly along the Hindu Kush mountain range, near where the Eurasian and Indian tectonic plates meet.