Lebanon earthquake sparks panic following Turkey-Syria tragedy

A 4.2 magnitude earthquake shook Lebanon overnight on Wednesday, prompting fear and panic among Lebanese residents.

"At 20:58 local time, a 4.2-degree earthquake occurred on the Richter scale, 5 kilometres south of the city from Hermel, and it was felt by the residents of the northern Beqaa Valley, Matn, Keserwan and Beirut," Marleine Brax, the director of the country's National Centre for Geophysics director said.

Lebanon suffered nine tremors - including Wednesday's earthquake - and a number of aftershocks following Monday's devastating earthquake in Turkey and Syria, when a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck to the west of Gaziantep, with at least 19,700 reported dead.

#BREAKING
Minor earthquake of Magnitude 4.2 registered at 20:58 5km south of #Hermel (northern Beqaa) and was felt in many areas in #Lebanon #GodProtectLebanon 🙏🏻 pic.twitter.com/7uaEH1Vcnw

— Rula El Halabi (@Rulaelhalabi) February 8, 2023

No injuries were reported following the Lebanon earthquake, according to the Turkish Anadolu agency, however, a large number of buildings have sustained damage.

In the wake of Monday's disaster in neighbouring Syria and Turkey, the tremors prompted many Lebanese to leave their homes and sleep outside, particularly in Tripoli and Beirut's poorer neighbourhoods, where many felt their buildings were unsafe.

Lebanon is still reeling from the trauma of the Beirut Port explosion of August 2020, which killed 218 people, and devastated many of the city's buildings and infrastructure.

Lebanon's National Committee for Crisis and Disaster Management has urged local municipalities and the Engineers Union to carry out inspections within the next 72 hours to see if the damaged buildings pose any risk to Lebanese residents, Anadolu added.

Brax, told Lebanese broadcaster MTV that aftershocks can be expected "for a long time" but their strength will diminish over time and no tsunamis were affected.

According to Dubai-based broadcaster Al-Arabiya Al-Hadath, the earthquake was not felt by everyone in the country.

An earthquake of a 3.5 magnitude was also felt on Wednesday in the Palestinian city of Nablus, in the occupied West Bank, around 16:58 local time, according to the Palestinian Wafa agency.

The earthquake comes as neighbouring Syria and Turkey continue to suffer the effects of Monday's devastating earthquake with the death toll expected to rise dramatically.

Syrians are still reeling from the devastating war which began in 2011 when the regime brutally put down peaceful protests. Poverty, disease, and shortages of food and medical supplies are widespread.

The earthquake is one of the worst to hit the region in modern times, and the deadliest since at least the Izmit earthquake which hit Turkey in 1999.