At Least 13 People Killed Across Afghanistan and Pakistan by Powerful Earthquake

At least 13 people were killed across Afghanistan and Pakistan by a powerful earthquake that struck northeast Afghanistan Tuesday. 


The U.S. Geological Survey says the 6.5 magnitude quake struck about 40 kilometers southeast of the town of Jurn in the mountainous Hindukush region, at a depth of 118 kilometers.  


At least four people were killed and 50 others injured in northeast Afghanistan, while officials in Pakistan say at least nine people were killed and 44 injured in the northern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.  


Dozens of houses and buildings collapsed or were heavily damaged. Tremors from the quake were felt across South Asia as far away as New Delhi, more than 2,000 kilometers from the epicenter. 


The region is prone to violent seismic events. Tuesday’s quake occurred nearly a year after a 6.1 magnitude earthquake struck southeastern Afghanistan, killing more than 1,000 people. Tens of thousands of people across Pakistan and Kashmir were killed by a 7.6 magnitude quake in 2005.