TEHRAN, 27 December 2003 — Iran, where 4,000 people have been killed and 30,000 injured in a massive earthquake around the ancient city of Bam in the southeast of the country, has been struck by numerous deadly quakes. Following is a list of some of the deadliest quakes over the past four decades.
— June 22, 2002: Qazvin and Hamedan provinces in western Iran: 235 dead and 1,300 injured (magnitude 6.3).
— May 10, 1997: Birjand, eastern Iran: 1,613 dead and 3,712 injured (magnitude 7.1).
— Feb 28, 1997: Ardebil region in northwestern Iran: 965 dead and 2,600 injured, according to an official toll. Aid agencies put the toll at 1,100 dead (magnitude 5.5).
— June 21, 1990: Northwestern Iran: About 37,000 killed and more than 100,000 injured in Ghilan and Zandjan provinces in the deadliest and most powerful quake to hit the country, with a magnitude of 7.7. The quake devastated 27 towns and about 1,870 villages.
— June 11, 1981: Kerman province in southeastern Iran: 1,028 dead and 950 injured, with the city of Golbaf hit the hardest. On July 28, another 1,300 were killed in a second quake in the same region.
— Sept 16, 1978: Eastern Iran: 25,000 killed. The city of Tabass is completely destroyed, with 15,000 dead there alone.
— April 10, 1972: Ghir region in the southern Iranian province of Fars: 5,044 killed and 1,336 severely injured. Forty-five villages destroyed.
— Aug 31, 1968: Khorassan province in northeastern Iran: About 10,000 dead.
— Sept 1, 1962: Qazvin, west of Tehran: 12,000 killed and 200 villages destroyed.