Earthquake hits northern Iran as Israeli air strikes continue

TEHRAN: A 5.1-magnitude earthquake struck northern Iran on Friday, while Israeli air strikes continued to hit the country. However, the local authorities said there were no casualties and only minor damage.

The official news agency IRNA reported no casualties and only “minimal damage”.

According to the USGS, the quake struck at a depth of 10 kilometres (six miles), some 37 kilometres (23 miles) southwest of the city of Semnan.

State television reported the earthquake as measuring 5.5 and said it “shook the area around the city of Sorkheh in Semnan province”.

The tremor was also felt in the capital, Tehran, about 150 kilometres (90 miles) from Sorkheh.