Earthquake Hits India and Pakistan, Leaving 8 Dead

A magnitude 5.8 earthquake struck the Hindu Kush mountain range in Afghanistan on April 3, 2026, killing eight people in Kabul and sending tremors across Pakistan and northern India.

According to the Associated Press, the earthquake resulted in the deaths of eight individuals and the injury of one child after a house collapsed on the outskirts of Kabul. Hafizullah Basharat, a spokesman for the Kabul governor, stated that all eight victims were members of the same family.

The epicenter was located approximately 150 kilometers east of the Afghan city of Kunduz, according to the U.S. Geological Survey and the Euro-Mediterranean Seismological Center. While the quake was felt widely, there were no immediate reports of injuries or damage in areas closer to the epicenter, which authorities noted is a remote region where information can take several hours to reach the capital.

Data regarding the quake’s depth and magnitude varied slightly between monitoring agencies. The Associated Press reported the epicenter was at a depth of over 180 kilometers. The German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) reported the earthquake measured 5.9 in magnitude and struck at a depth of 177 kilometers, as reported by Reuters and the Hindustan Times.

Regional Impact

The seismic activity was felt across a wide swath of South Asia. In Pakistan, the Pakistan Meteorological Department reported that tremors were felt in the cities and towns of Islamabad, Peshawar, Chitral, Swat, and Shangla. No immediate reports of injuries or damage were recorded in Pakistan.

In India, the Hindustan Times reported that tremors were felt in Punjab, Haryana, Jammu & Kashmir, and Delhi. Residents in Delhi-NCR, as well as those in Uttar Pradesh’s Noida and Ghaziabad, reportedly rushed out of their residences during the tremors on the night of April 3, 2026.

Afghanistan’s Health Ministry spokesman, Sharafat Zaman, stated that provincial health authorities and those in Kabul had been put on alert following the event.

The Hindu Kush region is identified as highly seismically active, with earthquakes causing thousands of deaths in recent years.