BELGRADE, Serbia

Anadolu Agency's director-general expressed sympathy to Croatian people and the country's national news agency HINA in the wake of a recent earthquake that hit the capital Zagreb.

Senol Kazanci on Tuesday sent a letter in support of the HINA after the quake damaged the news agency's headquarters.

Addressing the Director-General Branka Gabriela Vojbodic, Kazanci expressed Anadolu Agency's sympathies with HINA staff.

"With great sadness, I learn that the offices of the HINA in Zagreb were severely damaged in an earthquake. At this hour of grief and difficult times, Anadolu Agency stands by the Croatian people and colleagues in the fellow news agency HINA," said Kazanci.

"Please accept our deep sympathies for the injured people and we wish their early recovery," added Kazanci.

A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck Zagreb on Sunday at 06.30 a.m. (0530GMT) at a depth of 10 kilometers (6.2 miles), according to the German Research Center for Geosciences (GFZ).

It damaged many homes and workplaces in the capital, as well as historical buildings.

Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said the earthquake was the strongest in 140 years, calling on people, who left their buildings, to stay calm and keep their distance from one another amid the global coronavirus pandemic.