Tasnim � A moderate earthquake jolted an area near the town of Aliabad-e Katul in Iran�s northeastern province of Golestan on Saturday.





The earthquake measuring 4.2 on the Richter scale struck an area 15 kilometers southwest of Aliabad-e Katul and 15 km southeast of Fazelabad, at 01:59 am (local time).

The epicenter was determined to be at 36.78 degrees north latitude and 54.83 degrees east longitude, at a depth of 10 km.

Iran is one of the most seismically active countries in the world, being crossed by several major fault lines that cover at least 90% of the country. As a result, earthquakes in Iran occur often and are destructive.

The deadliest quake in Iran's modern history happened in June 1990. It destroyed the northern cities of Rudbar, Manjil and Loshan, along with hundreds of villages, killing an estimated 37,000 people.

Bam in the country�s southeastern province of Kerman witnessed a strong quake in December 2003 which killed 31,000 people.