On September 24, 2014, in Pakistan, a 7.7- and 7.8-magnitude dual earthquake devastated the southwestern province of Balochistan and claimed the lives of at least 285 people.
Similarly, two earthquakes of magnitude 6.4 and 6.3 were recorded in Iran on August 11, 2012, killing at least 300 people near the city of Tabriz in the northwest of the country.
Among the strong earthquakes causing major casualties in the past two decades also include the earthquake in Turkey on October 23, 2011. A 7.2 magnitude earthquake rocked southeastern Turkey and left more than 600 dead.
Also in 2011, in Japan, a magnitude 9.0 earthquake occurred on March 11, accompanied by a tsunami, killing about 15,690 people and injuring 5,700. This catastrophic earthquake also led to the largest nuclear disaster in the world since the Chernobyl disaster in 1986.
A few weeks earlier, on February 22, 2011, in New Zealand, a magnitude 6.3 earthquake occurred. The earthquake struck Christchurch and claimed the lives of at least 180 people.
On February 27, 2010, in Chile, a magnitude 8.8 earthquake occurred after a tsunami that killed more than 500 people, destroyed thousands of houses, bridges and roads.
Also in 2010, on January 13, a magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince, killing 316,000 people. The United Nations estimates that about 80,000 homes in Port-au-Prince and the surrounding area have been destroyed.
In the 2000s, terrible earthquakes causing great casualties were recorded in the world. On May 12, 2008, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake was recorded in Sichuan province, China, killing 87,600 people.
Previously, on December 26, 2004, a 9.15 magnitude earthquake occurred off the coast of Sumatra, Indonesia, triggering a tsunami that hit Indonesia, Thailand, India, Sri Lanka and many other countries in the region, wreaking havoc. villages and popular tourist islands, leaving about 230,000 people dead or missing.
In late 2005, a magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck northeast of Islamabad, killing at least 73,000 people. The earthquake that struck on October 8 also affected the Indian-controlled Kashmir region and claimed the lives of 1,244 people.
Previously, on December 26, 2003, a 6.6 magnitude earthquake was recorded in Kerman province, Iran. The earthquake devastated the city of Bam and claimed the lives of 31,000 people.