Afghanistan Earthquake Kills Over 1,000

KABUL – The powerful 6.0-magnitude earthquake that struck just before midnight on September 1, 2025, has tragically claimed the lives of 1,124 people and injured a further 3,251, according to the Afghan Red Crescent Society.

The disaster, one of the deadliest to hit the country in two decades, is a consequence of a shallow tremor that rattled buildings from Kabul to neighbouring Pakistan's capital, Islamabad.

The high death toll has been attributed to the quake's shallow eight-kilometre depth and the fragile, mud-brick construction of homes, which offered little resistance and collapsed onto sleeping families. Over 8,000 residential houses, primarily in Kunar province, have been completely or partially destroyed.

While Kunar was initially reported as the hardest-hit area, the Afghan Red Crescent Society has since stated that the remote provinces of Paktika and Khost bore the brunt of the damage.

In the hours after the quake, locals joined a desperate effort to pull people from the rubble of destroyed homes. A quick response was mobilised by the Taliban authorities and the United Nations, but many affected villages remained inaccessible due to blocked roads and the remote, mountainous terrain.

The figures for fatalities and injuries have not yet been finalised, as relief and rescue teams continue to work to pull people from under the rubble.

The earthquake has highlighted Afghanistan's vulnerability, as the country is located in a seismically active region near the Eurasian and Indian tectonic plates.

The tragedy has further strained the resources of a nation already facing poverty, a decline in humanitarian aid, and a large population of returnees and migrants.