Northern provinces of Balkh and Samangan worst hit by magnitude 6.3 quake with hundreds injured, while Mazar-i-Sharif’s Blue Mosque reportedly affected
A powerful 6.3 magnitude earthquake that struck northern Afghanistan overnight has killed more than 20 people and injured about 320, the health ministry said on Monday.
The preliminary tolls of deaths and injuries were recorded in the Balkh and Samangan provinces, which have suffered most of the damage, a ministry spokesperson, Sharafat Zaman, said in a video message shared with journalists.
The quake also damaged the Blue Mosque of Mazar-i-Sharif, a 15th-century landmark famed for its vibrant tiles, according to an AFP journalist who saw the damage.
The US Geological Survey said the quake’s epicentre was 22km (14 miles) west-southwest of Khulm, Afghanistan, and at a depth of 28km. It struck at 12.59am local time, the USGS said.
