According to a Taliban government spokesperson, the death toll from strong earthquakes that rocked western Afghanistan has risen to more than 2,000.

It’s one of the deadliest earthquakes to strike the country in twenty years.

The United States Geological Survey reports that the initial quake in Herat province on Saturday had a magnitude of 6.3, and was followed by three strong aftershocks measuring 6.3, 5.9 and 5.5.

On Sunday, the government spokesperson the death toll was higher than originally reported, noting that villages have been reduced to rubble, and hundreds of people have been buried under the debris.