Minor tremor strikes Omani peninsula near UAE, hours after larger Iranian quake

A minor earthquake struck near Musandam early on Saturday, hours after a larger tremor hit southern Iran.

The 2.5-magnitude quake hit an area south of the Omani peninsula, about 30km north of the UAE, at 5.35am, said the National Centre of Meteorology.

A 4.2-magnitude quake was also recorded in the south of Iran at 10.52pm on Friday evening, it said.

There was no effect in the Emirates.

Last week tremors were felt in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and the Northern Emirates after two earthquakes rocked Iran in the space of a minute on November 14.

A 6.2-magnitude earthquake was recorded in southern Iran at 4.07pm, followed by one measuring 6.7, the NCM said.

There have been 10 smaller earthquakes since, according to NCM, all in roughly the same area.

The UAE occasionally experiences tremors from powerful earthquakes in Iran, which is one of the most seismically active countries in the world.

It is crossed by several major faults that cover at least 90 per cent of the country, making earthquakes there common and often destructive.

Since 1900, at least 126,000 people have died in Iran as a result of earthquakes.

The UAE, which sits on the edge of the Arabian tectonic plate, only experiences minor to moderate tremors. The Northern Emirates is the most seismically active area.

Dibba, Fujairah, which sits on an active fault line that crosses into Oman, experiences small to medium quakes up to the magnitude of 4 to 5.5, according to a seismic hazard assessment survey carried out by UAE authorities.

In 2002, Masafi in Fujairah experienced a 5-magnitude quake, the largest to affect the UAE in recent years.

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