Turkey Ready To Assist Quake-stricken People In Iran

Ankara, August 13, IRNA - Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu in a telephone conversation with his Iranian counterpart Ali Akbar Salehi expressed his country’s readiness to assist earthquake stricken people in northwestern Iran. He expressed regret over the earthquake in northwest of Tabriz which left hundreds of people dead or injured. He said his country is ready to dispatch rescue teams to the quake stricken areas. The Turkish foreign ministry in a statement expressed regret over the tragic event in Iran and expressed readiness to provide people in earthquake stricken areas with any relief aid. Two 6.2 and 6 magnitude earthquakes hit northwestern cities of Varzaqan and Ahar in East Azerbaijan province Saturday afternoon. The 6.2 richter quake hit the town of Ahar but the quake measuring 6 on the Richter scale jolted Varzaqan in East Azerbaijan province. Iran's Seismological Center said the quake struck at 17:04 p.m. local time on Saturday. Iran's Coroners Office announced on Sunday that the death toll from Saturday's twin quakes in northwest Iran approximately reached 250 to 300. The two strong quakes were followed by 55 aftershocks, the strongest of which was measured 4.8 on the Richter scale. Iran is located on seismic fault lines and is prone to earthquakes. It experiences at least one earthquake every day on average, although the vast majority are so small that they go unnoticed./end