A powerful 6.1 magnitude earthquake hit Afghanistan, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS). According to the Bakhtar News Agency, 280 people were killed and 600 injured.

"280 people died and more than 600 were injured in an earthquake in Paktika and Khost provinces on Tuesday evening, local officials told BNA."

Photos and videos of the destruction have surfaced on social media.

According to local authorities, the death toll is likely to rise.

Updated at 13:00: The death toll from the earthquake in Afghanistan has risen to 920, Deputy Minister for Disaster Management Sharafuddin Muslim said , as quoted by Tolo News TV channel. 610 people were injured.

In the fall of 2021, at least 20 people were killed and about 300 injured in Pakistan due to a 5.7 magnitude earthquake. The earthquake struck the southern part of the country in the morning, around 3 am local time, while most of the population was asleep. It occurred at a relatively shallow depth of 20 km with an epicenter 102 km east of the city of Quetta. More than 100 clay houses were destroyed, many buildings were damaged.

In 2006, about 73,000 people died due to a 7.6 magnitude earthquake that struck about 95 kilometers northeast of the country's capital, Islamabad.