A powerful earthquake struck a rural, mountainous region of eastern Afghanistan tuesday night.
Gatekeepers News reports that the 5.9 magnitude quake killed at least 1,000 people and injured 1,500 more, according to a state-run news agency.
Officials warned that the already grim toll would likely rise.
Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada said hundreds of houses were destroyed and the death toll was likely to rise.
It is the deadliest earthquake to strike Afghanistan in two decades.
The head of information for Paktika province, Mohammad Amin Hazifi, told the BBC that 1,000 people had died and 1,500 more are injured.
Rescue teams are still searching for others buried under the ground, he added.
The earthquake struck about 44km (27 miles) from the south-eastern city of Khost shortly after 01:30 local time (21:00 Tuesday GMT), when many people were asleep at home.
“Every street you go, you hear people mourning the deaths of their beloved ones. Houses are ruined,” a local journalist in badly-hit Paktika province said to the BBC.
