In the early hours of Wednesday, several regions across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Azad Kashmir, Punjab, and some areas of Afghanistan experienced mild earthquake tremors.
According to the National Seismic Monitoring Centre (NSMC), the earthquake registered a magnitude of 5.3 on the Richter scale.
The tremors were felt in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa districts of Malakand, Swat, Shangla, Chitral, Abbottabad, Mardan, Mohmand, Swabi, and Lower Dir.
In Azad Kashmir, residents in Samahni and its adjacent areas also felt the ground shaking.
Within Punjab, the Zafarwal region reported feeling the tremors.
Meanwhile, in neighbouring Afghanistan, the Hindu Kush region was also struck by an earthquake, as reported by the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC).
The EMSC indicated that the tremor had a magnitude of 5.6 and occurred at a depth of 121 kilometres. Its epicentre was situated approximately 164 kilometres east of Baghlan, a city with an estimated population of 108,000, according to the EMSC.
The EMSC had initially reported a magnitude of 6.4 for the quake before issuing a revised figure.
As of now, there have been no reports of any casualties or damage.
This seismic activity follows just days after a moderate earthquake rattled several cities in northern Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and the twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi.
According to the National Seismic Monitoring Centre (NSMC), the earthquake on April 12 occurred at 12:31 pm, with a magnitude of 5.5 and a reported depth of 12 kilometres. The epicentre was located 60 kilometres northwest of Rawalpindi, at latitude 33.90 N and longitude 72.66 E.
Cities in Punjab, including Attock and Chakwal, also reported feeling tremors in the region. In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, jolts were experienced in Peshawar, Mardan, Mohmand, Swabi, Nowshera, Lakki Marwat, Lower Dir, Malakand, Shabqadar, and other cities.
Earthquakes are a common occurrence in Pakistan, as the country is located on the boundary where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates meet. A significant portion of South Asia is seismically active due to the northward movement of the Indian plate colliding with the Eurasian plate.
