TEHRAN, Feb. 18 (Xinhuanet) -- A strong earthquake measuring 5.3 on the Richter scale hit the southeastern Iranian province of Kerman on Saturday afternoon, causing no casualties, the official IRNA news agency said.

    IRNA, citing the seismological survey of the Geophysics Institute of Tehran University, reported that the earthquake occurred at 14:22 local time (10:52 GMT) in Rafsanjan, a city some 750 km southeast of the capital Tehran.

    There have been no reports of casualties or damages to property caused by the quake, IRNA added.

    Kerman province has witnessed two major earthquakes for the past two years.

    On Dec. 26, 2003, a quake measuring 6.8 on the Richter scale hit historical city Bam, killing nearly 262,000 people.On Feb. 22, 2005, a quake measuring 6.4 on the Richter scale left more than 600 dead and 1,400 injured on the outskirts of Zarand, a town 250 km northwest of Bam. Enditem