Afghanistan earthquake live: more than 600 dead after shallow quake strikes country’s east, state media reports

Several villages in Kunar province ‘completely destroyed’, says ministry for public health, as rescue operations take place

At least 250 dead after 6.0 magnitude quake near Jalalabad

Here is a summary from Afghanistan, where hundreds of people have been killed after an earthquake struck the country’s mountainous eastern region late last night. This is what we know so far:

At least 622 people have been killed and more than 1,500 others injured in the earthquake, Afghanistan’s Taliban-run interior ministry said on Monday morning.

The earthquake struck the rugged province of Kunar at 11.47pm on Sunday and was centred 27km north-east of the city of Jalalabad in Nangarhar province, the US Geological Survey said.

Jalalabad is about 119km (74 miles) away from the capital city, Kabul. A 4.5 magnitude quake occurred 20 minutes later in the same province.

The Kunar Disaster Management Authority said deaths and injuries had been reported in the districts of Nur Gul, Soki, Watpur, Manogi and Chapadare.

The earthquake reportedly shook buildings from Kabul to Pakistan’s capital Islamabad.

Rescuers rushed to reach remote areas in the country’s eastern provinces in the aftermath of the earthquake but limited communications and the region’s narrow mountain roads have complicated rescue efforts.

Officials from the Taliban-run government have asked for aid from international organisations.

Afghanistan is prone to deadly earthquakes, particularly in the Hindu Kush mountain range, where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates meet.