Icelandic volcano erupts near Reykjavik

A volcano has erupted south-west of Iceland's capital Reykjavik, BBC News reports, citing the country's meteorological office.

It said the fissure is about 500-700 metres long (1,640-2,300ft) at Fagradalsfjall on Reykjanes peninsula. The last eruption there was some 800 years ago.

Iceland has recorded more than 40,000 earthquakes in the past three weeks.

In 2010, the eruption of another volcano, Eyjafjallajokull, brought air traffic to a halt across Europe.

However, the eruption of Fagradalsfjall is not expected to spew out much ash or smoke, so aviation should not suffer disruption.

The Icelandic Meteorological Office said the eruption of Fagradalsfjall began at about 20:45 GMT on Friday, and was later confirmed via webcams and satellite images.