Earthquake felt throughout southern Israel

Marcy Oster

JERUSALEM (JTA) — An earthquake reported to be between 5.1 and 5.5 magnitude was felt in southern Israel.

No damage or injuries were reported in the earthquake that struck on Saturday afternoon.

The epicenter of the earthquake reportedly was in the Sinai Peninsula. The temblor was felt in Eilat, Beersheba and Ashdod in the south and also in Tel Aviv, Hod Hasharon, Holon, Netanya, and Jerusalem, according to reports.

The earthquake, located on the East African Rift, reportedly was felt strongly in Cairo.

Hundreds of people died and were injured in a 6.2 magnitude quake in 1927 that centered on the Dead Sea.

In October 2014, five earthquakes of lesser magnitude were felt in northern Israel’s Upper Galilee. At the time, instructions on earthquake preparedness were updated and publicized to Israelis on order of the prime minister and earthquake drills were held in Israeli schools.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service – if this is your content and you’re reading it on someone else’s site, please read the FAQ at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php#publishers.