Pakistan hit by massive earthquake

A 7.2-magnitude earthquake jolted southwestern Pakistan early on Wednesday in a sparsely-populated area near the nation's borders with Iran and Afghanistan, The Wall Street Journal reported, referring to the US Geological Survey.

There were no immediate reports of large casualties. The quake's epicenter was 30 miles west of Dalbandin, a town in Pakistan's Baluchistan province. Television reports from Quetta, the provincial capital and the most populous city in the area, appeared to show that it had been spared major damage.

Officials in Karen, another town close to the epicenter, told the Associated Press that the town suffered no widespread damage.
Nasir Baluch, a police officer in Karan, told AP that several mud houses collapsed or were damaged in an area outside the town called Mashkil. There was no immediate word on casualties, but the area is sparsely populated, he said.

People came out of their houses in the southern city of Karachi, home to 18 million people, but no major damage was reported.
The quake's aftershocks were felt in New Delhi, India's capital, more than 700 miles away, with walls shaking for a few seconds.
Some Chinese state-owned mining companies have operations in the area close to the epicenter of the quake. It was unclear whether they were affected.