Five children killed in Afghan quake

Police and government officials are today struggling to assess the level of damage from a powerful earthquake that rocked the northern fringe of Afghanistan, but said initial reports indicated it was relatively light.

Police said five children died when the roofs of their homes collapsed.

At least 19 others were reported injured.

The government held an emergency meeting last night to co-ordinate its response to the quake, but efforts to assess the damage were hindered by the area’s remote location and the lack of communications there.

The US Geological Survey said the magnitude 6.7 quake was centred in the remote Hindu Kush mountains of north-eastern Afghanistan.

It struck shortly before 2:30am local time yesterday.

The five children were killed when their homes collapsed in Tili, a village in the south-east area of Badakhshan, according to local police chief Abdul Malik.

Shah Jahan Noori, the chief of police in Badakhshan, said about 100 houses were damaged and 250 to 300 cattle died.