KARACHI, Pakistan

A powerful earthquake jolted eastern Kunar province of Afghanistan late Sunday, killing more than 500 people and injuring more than 2,000 others, with authorities fearing a rise in the death toll.

Surrounded by mountains, Afghanistan is prone to earthquakes as it sits near the junction of the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates, a highly active seismic zone.

Many of the recent quakes have had shallow depths, which increased the intensity of shaking on the surface and destruction.

Here is a timeline of major earthquakes that struck the country since the Taliban returned to power in 2021 and before.

Aug. 31, 2025

A 6.0 magnitude earthquake shook eastern Kunar province, killing more than 500 people and injuring more than 2,000 others, and flattening hundreds of houses and buildings.

Oct. 7, 2023

A 6.3 magnitude earthquake and subsequent aftershocks in Herat province killed more than 2,000 people and injured more than 9,000. The earthquake was the country’s deadliest in years.

March 21, 2023

A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck the northeastern province of Badakhshan, killing at least 13 people in Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan.

Sept. 5, 2022

At least eight people were killed after tremors hit Kunar province, causing dozens of houses to collapse.

June 22, 2022

A shallow, 6.1-magnitude earthquake in the eastern provinces of Paktika, Paktia, Khost, and Nangarhar killed at least 1,036 people and caused thousands of homes to collapse.

Jan. 17, 2022

A 5.9 magnitude shallow earthquake in the western province of Badghis killed at least 26 people.

Oct. 26, 2015

A magnitude 7.5 earthquake, one of the most powerful quakes in the country's history, killed 399 deaths in Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan and India.