Afghan Taliban and Pakistan are currently embroiled in a conflict after Islamabad launched strikes on Afghanistan. Pakistan claimed that its strikes intended to punish TTP, which is allegedly involved in conducting attacks in the country.
The blast struck a second-hand clothes market in the Pamir Cinema district, said the humanitarian group Emergency NGO, which runs a surgical centre in the Afghan capital.
The Taliban have officially implemented a strict morality law in Afghanistan, mandating women to cover their faces and men to grow beards. This law, based on a 2022 decree by the Taliban's supreme leader, will be enforced by the Ministry for the Prevention of Vice and Propagation of Virtue.
It was not immediately clear whether anyone was killed in what the extremist group called a "retaliatory" move against Pakistani forces which had killed at least eight people including children in the Barmal district of Paktika and the Spera district of Khost.
It was also the fifth public execution since the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in August 2021 as the US and NATO troops were in the final weeks of their withdrawal from the country after two decades of war.
According to initial information, a passenger jet aircraft has crashed in the mountainous areas of Top Khana, including the districts of Kiran and Minjan, and Zebak district in Badakhshan.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but affiliates of the Islamic State group have targeted in the past Shiite schools, hospitals and mosques in the same area.
The Taliban have set up camps on the other side for people to stay in while they wait to be moved to their place of origin in Afghanistan. There is limited access to drinking water, no heating source other than open fires, no lighting, and no toilets.
This comes two weeks after at least seven people were killed in a blast targeting a Shiite mosque in Baghlan district. A group affiliated with the Islamic State is believed to be responsible for such attacks, including those on other Shiite areas.
The earthquake's epicenter and the extent of any damage or casualties are yet to be determined. Authorities are currently assessing the situation, and further information will be provided as it becomes available.
Earlier on Sunday, the Afghanistan Ministry of Disaster Management said that more than 9,000 people were injured in the tremors but later retracted and said over 2,000 received injuries. The spokesperson told the local media that the "tally was a mistake".
Pentagon’s Central Command has ordered interviews of nearly two dozen more service members who were at the Kabul airport when suicide bombers attacked the US forces during the withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.
The Taliban Ministry of Vice and Virtue also instructed the Kabul municipality to implement the new Taliban leader's decree and revoke women's beauty salon licenses.
EAM Jaishanakar acknowledged that Afghan Sikhs have been facing several issues including passport and citizenship.
The group has continued to carry out attacks in Afghanistan since the Taliban takeover, especially against the country’s minority groups.
Authorities say the curbs are in place because of gender mixing or because women allegedly are not wearing the hijab, or Islamic headscarf, correctly.
Earthquake: According to National Centre for Seismology (NCS), the tremor was felt at 5:49 am.
Kabul blast: The bombing was the second major attack in Kabul in 2023 and drew condemnation from the international community.
According to local media reports, several are feared to be killed during the explosion.
Kabul blasts: The latest incident took place barely three days after at least 10 people were killed and eight others seriously injured in an explosion that occurred at the Kabul military airport, on January 1.
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