7.0-magnitude earthquake rocks Greece and Turkey

A powerful earthquake has struck off Turkey's Aegean coast, north of the Greek island of Samos, officials said.

The 7.0 magnitude tremor, about 17km (11 miles) off the coast of western Izmir province, was felt as far away as Athens and Istanbul, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said.

There was no word on casualties but images from the Turkish city of Izmir showed buildings that had collapsed.

An earthquake that struck Izmir in 1999 killed about 17,000 people.

Reports said Friday's quake was also felt on the Greek island of Crete.

Video on social media showed people searching through the rubble of collapsed buildings but the footage could not be verified.

(Source: BBC)