INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:

At least 15 people have been killed and around 40 others injured after several earthquakes struck Afghanistan&s western Herat province on

Saturday, authorities said.Janan Sayeq, a spokesman for the National Disaster Management Authority, said that the casualties happened in

Zinda Jan district of Herat province.He said that the casualties were likely to increase.According to the official, some homes in Farah and

Badghis provinces were also partially damaged.Quakes started at about 11am local time, sending crowds of residents and shopkeepers out of

buildings in Herat city.Two 6.3 magnitude earthquakes in Afghanistan occurred at around 11am, followed by a 5.5 magnitude aftershock, the

United States Geological Survey (USGS) said in a report.USGS warned that hundreds of fatalities were possible as well as &potentially

widespread damage& as past events with this alert level have required a regional or national level response.National Disaster Management

Authority spokesman Mullah Jan Sayeq told AFP the initial toll was &preliminary& and he feared it would rise as &in the rural and

mountainous areas there have been landslides as well&

Mohammad Taleb Shahid, public health director of Herat province also told AFP this is not the final figure and that he believes people are

buried under the rubble.Herat is considered the cultural capital of Afghanistan and is the official capital of Herat province which is home

to an estimated population of 1.9 million.The post At least 15 killed, 40 injured in string of earthquakes that hit western Afghanistan

first appeared on Ariana News.