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Moderate earthquake kills 1 person, damages dozens of homes in northern Pakistan

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) — A magnitude 5.8 earthquake struck northern Pakistan on Monday, killing at least one person and damaging dozens of mud-brick houses, authorities said.

In a statement, the regional Gilgit-Baltistan government said the tremors mainly caused damage across the Hunza Valley. The tremors, which were also felt in several districts in the northwest, triggered landslides in Hunza and nearby towns, blocking several roads, it said.

According to the statement, rescue teams were still collecting information on casualties and damages. The quake’s epicenter was in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, according to the Pakistan Meteorological Department.

Pakistan lies along an active seismic zone and is frequently hit by earthquakes.

A magnitude 7.6 quake in 2005 killed thousands of people in Pakistan and Kashmir, which is divided between Pakistan and India and claimed by both.

Beijing bans 4 New Zealand lawmakers from entering China because they visited Taiwan

By WTOP Staff
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Beijing banned four New Zealand lawmakers from traveling to China for a year and demanded they apologize because they visited Taiwan on a parliamentary trip, according to a message from the Chinese embassy conveyed via parliamentary officials and shown to The Associated Press on Thursday. China has hit lawmakers from other countries with sanctions related to contact with Taiwan before, but it's the first time for New Zealand parliamentarians, the government in Wellington said. Beijing has been increasing pressure in recent years on the democratically governed island that it claims as its own territory. Two lawmakers reached by the AP on Thursday rejected the demand for an apology, while the other two could not be immediately reached. New Zealand's government said it would express concern about the travel bans to Beijing. The elected officials visited Taipei in May, as New Zealand parliamentarians have done “for decades,” a spokesperson for Foreign Minister Winston Peters said in a statement.
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