Xi sends condolence message after Nepal quake

President Xi Jinping has sent a message of condolence to Nepali President Ram Chandra Poudel after a strong earthquake on Friday night killed at least 157 people and injured many others in Nepal.

In his message sent on Saturday, Xi said he was shocked to learn about the strong earthquake in Nepal's Karnali Province, which caused heavy casualties and loss of property.

On behalf of the Chinese government and people, Xi expressed deep condolences for the deceased, offered sincere sympathies to the bereaved families and the injured, and wished the injured a speedy recovery.

Xi said he believes that under the leadership of Poudel and the Nepali government, people in the earthquake-stricken areas will be able to overcome all difficulties and rebuild their homes as soon as possible. China is willing to provide necessary disaster assistance to Nepal, he added.

On the same day, Premier Li Qiang extended condolences to Nepali Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, also known as Prachanda.

The 6.4 magnitude quake hit Jajarkot and Rukum West districts at 11:47 pm local time on Friday, at a depth of 10-15 kilometers, according to Nepali authorities.

Nepal Police, Nepal Armed Police Force and the Nepali Army are jointly carrying out rescue operations, with the government prioritizing the rescue and treatment of the injured.

Nepal's Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Narayan Kaji Shrestha told the media that China and India have offered support with relief and rescue.

Chinese Ambassador to Nepal Chen Song said that China will provide relief to help the survivors.

"As the first emergency response, China will provide materials worth 100 million NPR ($751,000) to the earthquake-stricken area, including tents, blankets from China-South Asian Countries Emergency Supplies Reserve," Chen wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

Nepal News reported that the Chinese ambassador said that relief materials would arrive in a couple of days.

"China expresses its sympathies and concerns over the casualties and property losses in west Nepal caused by the earthquake," Xu Wei, spokesperson for the China International Development Cooperation Agency, said on Saturday.

Some members of the Nepali community in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region are also collecting relief material, said Arbindra Prajapati, a manager for Nepal Airlines.

According to the Kathmandu Post, the United States has offered logistical support and help to search for survivors by sending its rescue teams to Nepal.

"I also received several phone calls from outside the country, from nations willing to extend help to quake victims," Prime Minister Prachanda was quoted as saying by the media organization.

Nepal's Minister for Health and Population Mohan Bahadur Basnet noted that various friendly nations had offered support to Nepal.

"The government will prepare some criteria as to what kind of support to accept before accepting them," he said.

Nepal's provincial governments have announced relief packages for the quake-hit areas.