Strong earthquake strikes off Crete, no damage reported

An earthquake of magnitude 5.9 struck off the island of Crete in Greece and was felt as far away as Egypt in the early morning hours on Wednesday, but no serious property damage was reported.

The quake was at a depth of 35 km (22 miles) near the island of Karpathos in the Mediterranean Sea, the Athens Geodynamic Institute said, prompting Greek authorities to issue a temporary tsunami warning.

Greece is one of Europe's most earthquake-prone countries and an unprecedented level of seismic activity shook the popular tourist island of Santorini for weeks earlier this year.