Strong 6.3 earthquake jolts Pakistan coast

A strong 6.3-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Pakistan early Wednesday, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said. 
The shallow quake struck at 3:03 a.m. (2203 GMT) on Tuesday, with the epicenter 23 kilometers (14 miles) southwest of the coastal town of Pasni, the USGS said.
There were no immediate reports of casualties in the remote province of Balochistan which covers the quake zone.
An AFP reporter in the provincial capital Quetta said residents in towns and cities near the epicenter, including the port of Gwadar, woke in panic and rushed out of their homes reciting verses from the Holy Qur’an.
Pakistan straddles part of the boundary where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates meet, making the country susceptible to earthquakes.
In October 2015, a 7.5-magnitude quake in Pakistan and Afghanistan killed almost 400 people, flattening buildings in rugged terrain that impeded relief efforts.
The country was also hit by a 7.6-magnitude quake on Oct. 8, 2005 that killed more than 73,000 people and left about 3.5 million homeless, mainly in Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
Balochistan has been wracked by sectarian and separatist insurgencies for more than a decade.

‘Indian fire kills laborer’
Pakistan says “unprovoked” Indian fire has killed a civilian in the disputed Kashmir region, calling it the latest violation of a 2003 cease-fire agreement.
The Foreign Ministry said it summoned an Indian diplomat Wednesday to protest the shooting by “Indian occupation forces,” which took place the day before across the Line of Control dividing the Himalayan region.
Pakistan and India each administer part of Kashmir while claiming the entire region. The nuclear-armed rivals have fought two of their three wars over Kashmir.
India accuses Pakistan of backing insurgents who have been fighting for Kashmir’s independence or its merger with Pakistan, a charge Islamabad denies.
More than 68,000 people have been killed in Kashmir violence since 1989.

Source: Arab News