At least 400 people have been killed in an earthquake in
southeastern Iran early on Tuesday and nearly 1,000 others wounded,
the country's state television reported.
The earthquake hit the area around the city of Zarand in the
province of Kerman, destroying several villages and affecting more
than 40 others.
According to the seismological base at Tehran University's
Geophysics Institute, the tremor, measuring 6.4 on the Richter
scale, occurred at 05:55 AM local time (02:25 AM GMT) and the
epicenter was located on the outskirts of Zarand.
The quake also shook the neighboring cities of Yazd, Meybod and
Behabad.
The affected area is about 200 km northwest of Bam, where nearly
262,000 people were killed in December 2003 by a quake that
measured 6.8 on the Richter scale.
Iran is situated on some of the world's most active seismic
fault lines and quakes of varying magnitudes frequently affect the
country.
(Xinhua News Agency February 23, 2005)