Powerful earthquake shakes west Afghanistan a week after devastating quakes hit same region
Islamabad (AP): A powerful 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck western Afghanistan on Sunday, just over a week after strong quakes and aftershocks killed thousands of people and flattened entire villages in the same region.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the latest quake's epicenter was about 34 kilometers (21 miles) outside Herat, the provincial capital, and eight kilometers (five miles) below the surface.
So far one person has been reported dead and around 150 others injured, said Mohammad Zahir Noorzai, head of the emergency relief team in Herat province. He added that casualty numbers might rise, as they haven't reached all affected areas yet.
The earthquakes on Oct. 7 flattened whole villages in Herat, in one of the most destructive quakes in the country's recent history.
More than 90 per cent of the people killed a week ago were women and children, U.N. officials reported Thursday.
Taliban officials said the earlier quakes killed more than 2,000 people across the province. The epicenter was in Zenda Jan district, where 1,294 people died, 1,688 were injured and every home was destroyed, according to U.N. figures.
The initial quake, numerous aftershocks and a second 6.3-magnitude quake on Wednesday flattened villages, destroying hundreds of mud-brick homes that could not withstand such force. Schools, health clinics and other village facilities also collapsed.
Besides rubble and funerals after that devastation, there was little left of the villages in the region's dusty hills. Survivors are struggling to come to terms with the loss of multiple family members and in many places, living residents are outnumbered by volunteers who came to search the debris and dig mass graves.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Bengaluru: Special court grants bail to MLA Byrathi Basavaraj in murder case
Bengaluru: A special court in Bengaluru on Thursday granted bail to BJP MLA Byrathi Basavaraj in connection with the murder of Shivaprakash alias Bikla Shiva, a realtor and rowdy-sheeter who was killed on July 15, 2025, The Hindu reported.
Santhosh Gajanan Bhat, judge of the special court of sessions for criminal cases against former and present MLAs and MPs, passed the order while allowing Basavaraj’s bail petition.
ALSO READ: Karnataka caste survey report likely to be submitted by April-end, says Minister Tangadagi
Basavaraj was arrested on February 12, 2026, and later remanded to judicial custody after undergoing a week-long interrogation in police custody. In the case, he has been arraigned as accused number-5 among the 20 accused.
While granting bail, the court directed the MLA not to threaten or tamper with prosecution witnesses and and not to directly or indirectly make an attempt to influence any of the witness.
Among the other conditions are that he has to appear before the investigating officer as and when required and has to cooperate for the probe, and not leave the court’s jurisdiction without prior written permission.
