Earthquake strikes eastern Egypt, is felt in Israel

A magnitude 5.5 earthquake shook eastern Egypt early Monday and was felt in parts of southern and central Israel, monitors said.

The quake struck about 40 kilometers (25 miles) north of the city of Suez at 3:00 am (0000 GMT), according to Egypt’s National Research Institute of Astronomy and Geophysics, which revised an earlier estimate of 5.2.

The German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) measured the earthquake at magnitude 5.4 and said it struck at a depth of 10 kilometers (6 miles). The US Geological Survey put the shallow tremor at magnitude 5.0, revising down an earlier reading.

Tremors woke people across Cairo and as far as El-Arish, near the border with Gaza Strip. Meanwhile, Israelis reported feeling tremors in Beersheba and near Jerusalem. Tremors were also registered in Jordan.

Egypt’s health minister Khaled Abdel Ghaffar ordered emergency response plans activated across the country and directed ambulance services to be at “maximum levels of preparedness.”

However, there were no immediate reports of casualties or damage, according to the health ministry and the Egyptian Red Crescent.

لحظة وقوع زلزال بقوة 5.6 درجة في مصر قرب السويس#سوشال_سكاي#مصر#زلزال pic.twitter.com/sXkOQQcaNr

— سكاي نيوز عربية (@skynewsarabia) August 3, 2026

The Egyptian Red Crescent urged residents to stay away from old and dilapidated buildings, which are common in some of Cairo’s working-class neighborhoods.

Intense earthquakes are uncommon in the northeast African country. The country’s deadliest earthquake in modern history struck in October 1992, when a 5.8-magnitude quake shook the capital, killing over 500 people and displacing thousands.

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