Afghan officials say 5.9-magnitude earthquake had epicentre in remote area

KABUL - An Afghan official says the epicentre of a magnitude-5.9 earthquake was in a remote and sparsely populated region near the country's borders with Pakistan, China and Tajikistan.

Mohammad Aslim Sayas, deputy director of the Afghanistan National Disaster Management Authority, said on Monday there have not yet been any reports of casualties or damage.

The quake happened late Sunday. The U.S. Geological Survey says the epicenter was 21 kilometres south-southwest of the town of Ashkasham in the Hindu Kush region of Afghanistan, 300 kilometres northeast of Kabul.

The quake was felt across northern Afghanistan, northern Pakistan and in the Indian capital of New Delhi.

It follows a magnitude-7.5 earthquake on Oct. 26, also in Afghanistan's northern Badakhshan province.