Islamabad and northern parts of the country were jolted by an earthquake on Friday night, according to the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD).

The earthquake's magnitude was recorded at 5.6, the PMD said, adding that it had originated in the Afghanistan-Tajikistan border region at a depth of 100 kilometres around 9:13pm.

Tremors were felt in the federal capital and its adjoining areas, as well as in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Mansehra, Hazara, Balakot, Battagram, Torghar, Haripur, Abbottbad, Swat, Malakand and Shangla areas, Dawn News reported.

No casualty or damage has been reported so far.

Earlier on Tuesday, an earthquake measuring 5.0 on the Richter scale had jolted coastal parts of Balochistan.

According to the National Seismic Monitoring Centre (NSMC), the epicentre of the moderate earthquake was 50 kilometres south of Gwadar at a depth of 25km in the Makran subduction zone.

“It’s the first time in decades that an earthquake of this magnitude has been reported in the Makran subduction zone and was felt from Gwadar to Omara,” NSMC Director Ameer Hyder had told Dawn.

He had said while an earthquake of this magnitude couldn’t produce a tsunami, there was a need for preparedness as the region had the potential to generate a tsunami anytime.

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