A massive rescue operation was underway in Afghanistan, after a strong earthquake and multiple aftershocks flattened homes in a remote, mountainous region, killing more than 800 people, the Taliban authorities said. The earthquake struck just before midnight, shaking buildings from Kabul to neighbouring Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad. Near the epicentre in the east of Afghanistan, around 800 people were killed and 2,500 injured in remote Kunar province alone, chief Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said. n18oc_world n18oc_crux