At least 800 dead in Afghanistan earthquake

At least 800 people have been killed and more than 1,300 others injured in Afghanistan after a 6.0-magnitude earthquake hit the country, Taliban officials said Monday.

The earthquake struck 17 miles from the eastern city of Jalalabad, near the border with Pakistan, at aound midnight local time (3:30 p.m. ET Sunday), NBC News reported, citing the U.S. Geological Survey.

Because the earthquake hit a remote mountainous area, “it will take time to get the exact information about human losses and damage to the infrastructure,” said Sharafat Zaman, a spokesperson for the Afghan Public Health Ministry.

“We have launched a massive rescue operation and mobilized hundreds of people to help people in the affected areas,” Zaman said. 

Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said the death toll had risen to 800 people. Earlier, Afghan interior ministry spokesperson Mufti Abdul Matin Qani had said 622 people had been confirmed dead and more than 1,300 injured in the eastern provinces of Nangarhar, which includes Jalalabad, and Kunar.

The ministry said that 1,000 injured people had been evacuated and admitted to hospitals.