Afghans begin the clean-up process after the strong earthquake that killed 20 people

Written by Sayed Haseeb

TANGI TASHKARAN, Afghanistan (Reuters) – Residents of northern Afghanistan on Tuesday began a clean-up operation after a powerful 6.3-magnitude earthquake killed at least 20 people and injured about a thousand others.

The earthquake occurred near the northern Afghan city of Mazar-i-Sharif early Monday morning, killing at least 20 people and damaging the city's historic Blue Mosque, authorities said.

About 945 people were injured, according to the latest figures issued by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Afghanistan.

Hundreds of homes were completely or partially destroyed, according to Afghanistan's National Disaster Management Authority, a number that relief groups said was alarming ahead of the Afghan winter, when temperatures drop below freezing.

On Tuesday, residents of Tangi Tashkurgan, an area close to the epicenter, were digging out rubble and strengthening damaged buildings.

Mohamed Yassin, a local shop owner, said that dozens of buildings were damaged or destroyed in the earthquake.

He added: “If you go to the stores, you will feel afraid that they may collapse at any moment, perhaps now or in 10 minutes.”

The disaster is the latest challenge for the Afghan Taliban administration, which is already facing crises including an earthquake in August that killed thousands in the east of the country, a sharp decline in foreign aid, and the mass deportation of Afghan refugees by neighboring countries.

The United Nations has pledged to provide assistance, along with India, which is seeking to improve relations with the Taliban government in Afghanistan, which is still subject to sanctions from many Western countries. China said on Tuesday it would also offer assistance.

Surrounded by rugged mountains, Afghanistan is vulnerable to a range of natural disasters, but its earthquakes cause the most deaths, killing about 560 people on average each year and causing annual damage estimated at about $80 million.

The primitive construction quality also contributes to the high number of casualties, as experts recommend building new structures in an earthquake-resistant manner and modifying existing buildings to reduce the chances of collapse.

(Reporting by Sayed Haseeb in Tangi Tashkargan and Muhammad Yunus Yawar in Kabul; Writing by Alasdair Pal; Editing by Alison Williams)

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