5.9-magnitude quake hits northern Afghanistan

KABUL, Afghanistan–A 5.9-magnitude earthquake hit northern Afghanistan on Monday, the US Geological Survey said, with tremors felt as far away as Indian-administered Kashmir.

The quake struck 224 kilometers (140 miles) deep beneath the Hindu Kush mountains and close to the Wakhan Corridor, the narrow strip of far northeastern Afghanistan that lies between Tajikistan and Pakistan.

It was felt strongly in Kabul, some 290 km from the epicenter, where people rushed into the streets in alarm, and even farther away in Srinagar, the main city of Indian-administered Kashmir.

In Pakistan the quake was felt in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in the northwest and the central province of Punjab, as well as the capital Islamabad.

A 5.6-magnitude quake in eastern Afghanistan in 2013 killed 13 people and flattened scores of homes.

Afghanistan is frequently hit by earthquakes, especially in the Hindu Kush mountain range, which lies near the junction of the Eurasian and Indian tectonic plates.