*ISTANBUL – At least seven people were killed including three children ineastern Turkey after a 5.7 magnitude earthquake hit neighbouring Iran, theofficial Anadolu news agency reported.*
Five people were injured and taken to hospital, Turkish Interior MinisterSuleyman Soylu said, adding that other people were believed to be trappedunder the rubble.
“Search and rescue efforts are ongoing,” he said. The epicentre of thequake, which struck at 9:23am, was near the Iranian village of Habash-eOlya, less than 10 kilometres (six miles) from the border, according to theUS Geological Survey.
The earthquake had a depth of six kilometres, according to TehranUniversity’s Seismological Centre. It injured at least 25 people anddamaged a number of houses in four villages of Iran´s West Azerbaijanprovince, Mojtaba Khaledi, a spokesman for the country’s emergencyservices, told AFP.
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Anadolu said the quake caused damage in several villages in neighbouringVan province. The province was struck earlier this month by two avalancheswhich killed 41 people. -APP/AFP
