5.3-magnitude earthquake jolts Islamabad, parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

An earthquake measuring 5.3 on the Richter scale jolted Islamabad, Peshawar and multiple districts in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Wednesday. 

The tremors were felt in other areas including Mohmand, Shabqadar, Attock, Malakand, Swat, Shangla, Buner, and Abbottabad.

According to the Pakistan Meteorological Department’s Seismological Centre, the earthquake struck at 10:13am, with a depth of 220 kilometers.

The epicentre was located in the Hindu Kush region of Afghanistan, a region known for frequent seismic activity.

This earthquake adds to a series of tremors that have affected the region in recent years, with the Hindu Kush area being a hotspot for seismic activity due to its position along tectonic plate boundaries.

Today's tremors came exactly two months after a 5.7 magnitude earthquake jolted the federal capital and parts of Punjab and KP on September 11.

The quake in September was preceded by another one of 5.4 magnitude which jolted parts of Islamabad, Rawalpindi and KP in June.

So far, the country has reportedly witnessed at least seven earthquakes this year, of which three were in coastal city Karachi

Earthquakes are not uncommon in Pakistan, as the country is situated on the boundary of the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates. Large parts of South Asia are seismically active because a tectonic plate known as the Indian plate is pushing north into the Eurasian plate.