At least 165 people were injured in a 5.6 magnitude earthquake that jolted northwestern Iran on Friday, according to state media.
According to the Iranian Seismological Center (IRSC), the earthquake that struck close to Khoy County, West Azarbaijan province, at 6:46 a.m. local time (0316 GMT) has an 8-kilometre depth.
“Today’s quake left 165 injured, of whom 139 were discharged after receiving medical help. Twenty-six others require more assistance,” Mohammad Sadegh Motamedian was quoted as saying by IRNA News Agency.
The earthquake had destroyed 80 residential units in 10 villages in the Salmas and Khoy districts, Jafar Barzegar, the director general of West Azarbaijan’s Housing Foundation, Xinhua news agency reported.
A 5.4 magnitude earthquake occurred in Khoy County in the West Azerbaijan province of Iran on 18 January this year, three people were killed, and more than 800 were injured.
A similar incident occurred on early October 2022 and left 1,308 people injured.
Iran is prone to frequent earthquakes, situated on several significant tectonic faults. According to the IRNA news agency, West Azerbaijan has registered at least 35 earthquakes with a Richter scale of 2.5 or higher in the previous two months.
