KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – At least 15 people were injured when a 4.9-magnitude earthquake struck Afghanistan’s eastern Nangarhar province on Tuesday morning, local Taliban authorities said.
Naqibullah Rahimi, spokesperson for the Taliban public health department in Nangarhar, said the quake shook Jalalabad, the provincial capital, at around 5:48 am local time. Similar tremors were also felt in Behsud and Kuz Kunar districts as well as other parts of the province, he added.
Rahimi said the injured, including women and children, were transported to health facilities for treatment. He did not provide details on their conditions or the extent of damage caused by the earthquake.
The U.S. Geological Survey confirmed the magnitude 4.9 quake struck at a depth of 10 kilometers (6 miles), approximately 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) northeast of Jalalabad.
Nangarhar and neighboring provinces are among Afghanistan’s earthquake-prone areas and have experienced several deadly earthquakes in recent years.
A 6.0-magnitude earthquake that struck eastern Kunar and surrounding provinces in August 2025 killed at least 2,000 people and injured nearly 4,000. Entire villages were destroyed and thousands of people displaced, many of whom continue to deal with the aftermath.
In mid-October 2023, three major earthquakes measuring 6.3 in magnitude, followed by multiple aftershocks, struck Herat province in western Afghanistan and killed more than 2,000 people. An earlier powerful quake in Paktika province destroyed hundreds of homes and left at least 1,000 people dead and about 3,000 injured.
The earthquake is the latest in a series of natural disasters, including floods, landslides and severe droughts, to hit Afghanistan amid a severe humanitarian crisis. Nearly half of the population — about 22 million people — need assistance this year. Humanitarian funding has declined sharply in recent years, with the United Nations’ $1.7 billion appeal for 2026 only 26% funded, limiting the capacity to respond to ongoing needs and sudden emergencies.
