At least 250 people have died in an earthquake that struck Afghanistan, the Taliban-run Bakhtar state news agency reports, as rescuers comb the rubble of homes in a desperate hunt for survivors.

The 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck northeastern Afghanistan, in the rugged, mountainous Jalalabad area close to the border with Pakistan around midnight local time, local officials said on Monday.

It was at a depth of 10km, the German Research Center for Geosciences (GFZ) said.

Early reports showed 30 dead in a single village, the health ministry said, but added that accurate casualty figures had yet to be gathered in an area of scattered hamlets with a long history of earthquakes and flooding.

"The number of casualties and injuries is high, but since the area is difficult to access, our teams

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