UPDATE 4-7.3 magnitude quake rocks northern Iraq, Iran

CHANGES HEADLINE, ADDS DETAILS, UPDATES DEATH TOLL

ANKARA (AA) - An earthquake measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale rocked northern Iraq and Iran, the U.S. Geological Survey said on Sunday evening.

At least 61 people were killed and more than 300 others injured in Iran's border areas, according to information provided by the concerned authorities, said Iran's semi-official Fars News Agency.

The epicenter of the quake was located around 32 kilometers (20 miles) southwest of the city of Halabja, near the Iranian border, at a depth of 33 kilometers, and hit at 9:18 p.m. local time (1818GMT), said the U.S. Geological Survey.

Initially, six people were announced dead in the border town of Qasr-e Shirin in Kermanshah Province in Iran's west, according to Iran's state news agency IRNA and the semi-official Fars news agency.

According to Iraqi media, the earthquake damaged buildings in certain areas of Kirkuk and Sulaymaniyah.

A local health official of Sulaymaniyah in northern Iraq's Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) initially said at least 50 people were injured.

The first quake was followed by a dozen aftershocks ranging from 3.1 to 4.1 in magnitude, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

The earthquake damaged phone, internet and powerlines throughout various towns and villages.

The quake also destroyed a number of buildings in rural areas and caused cracks in the walls of villages and towns some 122km to the West of Kermanshah city, Fars News Agency added.

The earthquake was also felt in Turkey's southeastern and eastern regions, including the Diyarbakir, Batman, Mardin, Hakkari, Van, Mus, and Sirnak provinces.

It was also felt as far away in Kuwait, Syria, Lebanon and Pakistan.