Eight people were killed after an earthquake struck parts of Afghanistan on Friday evening. The earthquake’s tremors were also felt in parts of Pakistan, as well as Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana and Delhi in India.
Residents in parts of Delhi-NCR rushed to move out of their residences due to tremors on Friday night. Tremors were also felt in the cities of Noida and Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh and other cities.
In Pakistan, the earthquake was felt by residents of cities and towns including Islamabad, Peshawar, Chitral, Swat and Shangla, according to the Pakistan Meteorological Department. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries in the country.
How strong is the earthquake in Afghanistan?
The northern and eastern parts of Afghanistan, where the quake occurred, are considered very seismically active, and quakes have killed thousands in recent years, according to the agency’s report.
The magnitude of the earthquake on Friday reached 5.8. Its impact was significant, as it resulted in the deaths of eight people and the injury of one child. The German Research Center for Geosciences (GFZ) said that the earthquake occurred at a depth of 177 kilometers.
Read also | ‘No skin-to-skin contact with males’: Afghan women left under earthquake rubble. Courtesy – gender rules
What is the epicenter?
The epicenter of the earthquake that occurred on Friday was in the Hindu Kush mountain range, about 150 kilometers east of the Afghan city of Kunduz, according to the Euro-Mediterranean Seismic Center and the US Geological Survey.
The fourth major earthquake in the past four years in Afghanistan
Afghanistan faces major natural disasters. In August 2025, a 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck a remote mountainous area in eastern Afghanistan, killing more than 2,200 people and trapping residents under rubble. Most of the casualties occurred in Kunar province, where people usually live in houses made of wood and mudbrick along steep valleys.
In November of the same year, another 6.3-magnitude earthquake struck Samangan Province in northern Afghanistan, killing at least 27 people and injuring more than 950 others. The earthquake also damaged historical sites, including Afghanistan’s famous Blue Mosque in Mazar-i-Sharif and the Bagh-e-Jahan Nama Palace in Kholm.
In October 2023, a 6.3-magnitude earthquake, followed by strong aftershocks in western Afghanistan, killed thousands.
The tremors were felt in Delhi too, and residents say the bed was shaking
The Indian National Center for Earthquake Monitoring confirmed that Delhi residents also felt the impact of the earthquake. In a post on the website
One resident said her bed and fan were shaking when the quake struck. A woman told ANI: “When the earthquake happened, I was sitting in the room and felt the bed shaking. When I looked up, the fan was also shaking. When I went out, I saw that the people around me were also afraid.”
Kabul is on high alert
Hafizullah Basharat, spokesman for the Kabul governor, said that the eight people killed belonged to the same family, and died when a house collapsed on the outskirts of the capital.
Afghan Health Ministry spokesman Sharafat Zaman said that Kabul and regional health authorities had been placed on alert.
Kabul is located about 290 kilometers (180 miles) southwest of the epicenter. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries in the areas closest to the epicenter. The Associated Press reported that the area is remote, and it can often take several hours for local authorities to transmit information to Kabul.
