Turkey earthquake: 5.3 tremor strikes eastern Elazig province

No immediate reports of casualties or damage after quake

Damaged buildings in Sursuru neighborhood after a 6.8-magnitude earthquake jolted Elazig in January (Anadolu/Gettys)

A 5.3 magnitude earthquake has shaken Elazig province and several neighbouring provinces in eastern Turkey.

Turkey's interior minister Suleyman Soylu tweeted there were no immediate reports of casualties or damage after Sunday’s tremor.

“There is nothing negative so far. All our teams continue their examinations on the ground,” Mr Soylu tweeted.

The quake struck at 09:37am (0637 GMT), the country’s Disaster and Emergency Management Directorate said. 

Turkish media said the earthquake was also felt in Malatya, Diyarbakir and Sanliurfa provinces.

Turkey is crisscrossed by major fault lines and earthquakes are frequent.

In January, a 6.8 magnitude earthquake struck Elazig, killing 41 people in that province and neighbouring Malatya.

Another deadly quake struck western port city of Izmir in October, killing 116 people.

Turkey's worst quake in decades came in 1999, when a pair of strong earthquakes struck northwest Turkey, killing around 18,000 people.

Additional reporting by agencies