Moderate quake shakes Pakistan

A moderate 5.1-magnitude earthquake shook northwest Pakistan on Monday, US geologists said, but there were no immediate reports of serious damage or deaths.

The quake struck at 2:44 am (2144 on Sunday GMT), 40 kilometres (25 miles) northwest of the capital Islamabad, at a depth of 33 kilometres, the US Geological Survey said.

Tremors were felt in several cities in the northwest, including Peshawar and Islamabad, where residents rushed into the streets.

Pakistan's meteorological department measured the magnitude as 5.3 and placed the epicentre at the town of Abbottabad.

"No loss of life or damage to property has been immediately reported," Mohammad Riaz, an official with the department, said.

The quake came just days after the fifth anniversary of a 7.6-magnitude earthquake which struck on October 8, 2005 and killed more than 73,000 people, mainly in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir and parts of the country's northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

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