Havana - Cuban President Raul Castro sent his condolences to Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, the damages caused by the earthquake that struck the Asian country this weekend, the Cuban Foreign Ministry said today.

According to a statement posted on Cubaminrex website, Raul Castro sent his Japanese counterpart the condolences of the Cuban government and people for human and material losses, which was extended to the victims' families and the people affected.

Two earthquakes of magnitude higher than 7.2 on the Richter scale devastated several cities and towns of Kumamoto and Oita prefectures, southeast of Japan, on Friday and Saturday.

So far, the death toll from earthquakes has risen to 50. The quakes also left thousands injured and around 250,000 evacuees.

According to Japanese rescue teams, which continue their efforts to rescue possible survivors under the rubble, the death toll could increase in the next hours.