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At least 20 dead, more than 1,015 injured – Turkey earthquake
An earthquake with a magnitude of 6.7 has shaken eastern Turkey, Friday evening, killing at least 20 people, injuring more than 1,015, causing buildings to collapse, and leaving several trapped, Turkish news agencies reported.
According to a Turkish, Anadolu Agency, the earthquake hits the town of Sivrice, in eastern Elazig province at 8.55 p.m. local time, with its epicentre in Sivrice district, along with neighbouring provinces.
However, 20 dead and more than 1015 injured were reported but the country’s Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) said 922 others were injured; 560 in Elazig, 226 in Malatya, 37 in Kahramanmaras, 34 in Sanliurfa, 34 in Diyarbakir, 25 in Adiyaman, 6 in Batman.
Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca announced the updated death toll, saying: “We have approximately 30 residents under the wreckage in Elazig.”
The search and rescue operations are underway and the death toll could rise, said Koca.
The country’s Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu has told reporters that the injured were transferred to hospitals and facilities have been opened to serve those who have been affected.
Five buildings in Sivrice and 25 in Doganyol district, Malatya were destroyed, the Turkish authorities said and warned the residents not to go into damaged buildings.
The AFAD said 118 aftershocks, with magnitudes ranging from 2.7 to 5.4, were felt following the powerful quake. The quake struck at a relatively shallow depth of 10 km (6 miles), according to the US Geological Survey (USGS).
It said hundreds of tents, beds and thousands of blankets were dispatched to cities.
The Turkish Red Crescent announced a crisis desk was set up in Ankara, and rescue teams dispatched to quake areas. Mobile kitchens, which serve up to 5,000 people, were sent to the region.
The quake was also felt in other provinces including Adana, Osmaniye, Tunceli and Hatay and countries including Syria, Armenia and Georgia.
This is not the first quake to hit Turkey in 2020. A 5.4-magnitude quake jolted western province of Manisa on Wednesday. And Ankara was rattled by a 4.5-magnitude quake Thursday.
A total of 51 people were killed in 2010 when a 6.0-magnitude quake hit Elazig province.
on 1999, a deadly earthquake occurred in northwestern Izmit city of Turkey. The event lasted for 45 seconds, killing around 17,000 people and left nearly half a million people homeless.
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Tajik foreign minister urges international community to help Afghanistan address its challenges
Tajikistan’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sirodjiddin Mukhriddin, has called on the international community to step up assistance for Afghanistan as the country continues to face challenges.
Speaking at a press conference, Mukhriddin said Tajikistan and Afghanistan maintain active coordination between their law enforcement agencies to prevent security incidents along their shared border. He noted that this cooperation remains essential, as the frequency of armed attacks and criminal activity in border regions has increased in recent months.
He said that Afghan authorities had assured Tajikistan they would take necessary measures to stop further incidents and would conduct thorough investigations into any violations.
Mukhriddin emphasized that Tajikistan supports constructive international engagement aimed at improving Afghanistan’s socio-economic conditions. He highlighted that Tajikistan has provided more than 6,000 tons of humanitarian aid to Afghanistan, including food and essential supplies delivered in 2025 to assist communities affected by devastating earthquakes.
The minister also pointed to growing economic cooperation between the two neighbors. Tajikistan has reopened border markets and continues to supply electricity to Afghanistan.
Tajikistan and Afghanistan share a border of more than 1,300 kilometers—over 1,100 km of which consists of waterways and about 190 km of land boundaries.
Meanwhile, Zafar Samad Director of the Drug Control Agency under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan, has said that last year, 17 incidents of clashes happened with drug smugglers along the border with Afghanistan. As a result, two Tajik forces and 10 Afghan nationals have been killed, he added.
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Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, warned during a graduation ceremony for soldiers of the Ministry of National Defense that the Islamic Emirate will respond decisively to anyone with ill intentions toward Afghanistan.
He said the country is “not an easy target, but a bitter tree that has made the throats of empires bitter and newborns can never digest.”
Baradar also announced that in the coming days, the Islamic Emirate will introduce tax exemptions of one to five years for domestic and foreign investors, based on the level of investment in new sectors. He also said that the process of distribution of land to manufacturers will be accelerated.
Baradar called on countries to engage in political and economic relations according to the values and principles of the Islamic Emirate, emphasizing that energy and resources spent on conflict would be better used to support one another and strengthen common interests.
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The report noted that during this period, there were 28 cases of arbitrary arrest and detention, and at least seven cases of torture and ill-treatment targeting officials and personnel of the former Afghan government.
According to the report, some of the officials and forces who had recently returned to Afghanistan from Iran and Pakistan were among those subjected to extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests, and detentions.
The report also highlighted restrictions on women’s work and movement, executions and flogging of individuals, and disruptions to internet and telecommunications services.
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