[link to www.presstv.ir]

5.5-magnitude quake hits eastern Iran, kills five

The tremor hit the province of South Khorasan at 20:38 local time (17:08 GMT) on Wednesday.

The epicenter of the quake was 25 kilometers (15 miles) from the town of Zohan, at a depth of nine kilometers, the Iranian Seismological Center said on its website.

"Based on the latest reports from the scene, the quake killed five people and injured 12 others," South Khorasan Crisis Management Headquarters Director Mohammad Ali Akhoundi told Mehr news agency.

Javad Heravi, who represents the province in the Iranian parliament, said that the quake caused damage to rural buildings and cut power lines and telephone communication.