The Taliban in Afghanistan on Tuesday encouraged charities to provide aid to earthquake victims as it also ordered its militants to help in aid efforts.
"The Islamic Emirate [Taliban] calls on ... charitable organizations to not hold back in providing shelter, food and medical supplies to the victims of this earthquake," the militant Islamist group said on its website. "It similarly orders its mujahideen in the affected areas to lend their complete help to the victims and facilitate those giving charity to the needy."
More than 300 people died after Monday's 7.5-magnitude earthquake that struck northeast Afghanistan and shook the south Asia region. The quake triggered dozens of landslides, increasing the difficulty of gaining access to remote areas.
The earthquake was centered deep inside the Earth's crust -- about 130 miles below the surface. The shaking could be felt in Pakistan, India and Tajikistan.
The death toll is expected to climb as medical aid and supplies for victims have been cut off due to inaccessible roads. Pakistan dispatched military aircraft to assess damage and a transport plane to distribute food and other provisions to Chitral, a remote state that was badly damaged.
The region has a history of powerful earthquakes due to the Indian subcontinent drifting into and under the Eurasian landmass, resulting in frequent tectonic activity.
The quake triggered nerve-wracking tremors, with at least three aftershocks measuring up to magnitudes of 4.8 nearly 125 miles west-northwest of the epicenter.
Monday's earthquake was similar in strength to one that struck neighboring Kashmir and killed more than 70,000 in 2005.
By Andrew V Pestano
