M5.8 earthquake shakes Afghanistan

A magnitude 5.8 earthquake struck Afghanistan on Friday, Qazinform News Agency reports, citing the Kazakhstan National Data Center.

photo: QAZINFORM

According to the Data Center of the Institute of Geophysical Research, the earthquake occurred on February 20, 2026, at 18:09 Astana time (13:09 GMT).

The earthquake's epicenter was located at 35.95 degrees north latitude and 69.63 degrees east longitude. It registered a magnitude of 5.8 (mb) and an energy class of 13.9, with a focal depth of 138 km.

On Thursday, Qazinform reported that an earthquake hit 311 km southeast of Almaty.