The earthquake that struck Egypt on Monday brought back to the forefront the predictions of Dutch seismologist Frank Hoogbaits, who spoke four days ago about the possibility of a stronger earthquake in the Mediterranean region
Hooghbetz had written in a post on the X platform on July 30: "The Mediterranean Sea may experience a stronger earthquake, perhaps at the small Aegean plate."
He added that "after the peak of lunar activity we witnessed yesterday, there is a global possibility of an earthquake of up to 6 on the Richter scale, and it may be stronger during the next two days."
Following the earthquake that struck Egypt, Hooghwitz commented that the estimated magnitude of the earthquake had been revised to 5.2, noting that the estimate might be subject to further revision in the coming days after reviewing additional data.
In another post, the researcher said that seismic activity in the Mediterranean region has been "moderate so far," but noted that two regions, Italy and Egypt, have experienced tremors ranging from moderate to destructive, something he said the two regions have not seen for years, adding that pinpointing the exact locations of seismic activity remains difficult.
Egypt's National Seismic Network, affiliated with the National Research Institute of Astronomy and Geophysics, recorded an earthquake measuring 5.2 on the Richter scale early Monday morning. Its epicenter was located approximately 38 kilometers from the city of Suez. The tremor was felt across a wide area, including Greater Cairo and several other governorates, but no casualties or significant damage have been reported.
The earthquake in Egypt comes amid seismic activity in the Mediterranean region in recent days, including an earthquake that struck the Campi Flegrei area near the city of Naples in southern Italy, where authorities announced that the earthquake measured 4.7 on the Richter scale and caused power outages and disruptions to train and metro services, in addition to damage to some buildings.
