Earthquake kills 7, injures 5 in eastern Turkey

By Burak Bir

ANKARA (AA) - At least seven people were killed and five others injured on Sunday in eastern Turkey when an earthquake hit the border region with Iran, authorities said.

Tremors from a 5.7-magnitude quake centered in northwestern Iran were also felt in Turkey's Van province.

Some buildings were damaged and many people are trapped under debris, Turkey's Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said in a news conference.

He added that search and rescue teams were dispatched to the quake-hit region.

A powerful earthquake hit eastern Turkey earlier this year causing the deaths of 41 people and injuring 1,600 others.