A 7.2 magnitude earthquake hit Eastern Turkey Sunday destroying upwards of 45 buildings and killing at least 60 people according to Turkey's state-run television reports USA Today.

Struck hardest was the town of Ercis near the Iranian border, which sits atop a fault line. The earthquake has left the town in a panic and has taxed the telephone systems Mayor of Ericis, Kekir Kaya said in an interview.

From USA Today: 

As many as 80 buildings collapsed in Ercis, including a dormitory, and 10 buildings collapsed in Van, the Turkish Red Crescent said. Some highways also caved in, CNN-Turk television reported.

"There are so many dead. Several buildings have collapsed. There is too much destruction," Ercis mayor Zulfikar Arapoglu told NTV television. "We need urgent aid. We need medics."

Outside of Turkey, the reverberations were felt in Iran. 

From the Los Angeles Times: 

The quake's epicenter was in the village of Tabanli in eastern Van province, bordering Iran. It was felt in northwest Iran, causing some panic in major cities, Iranian media reported, but without any mention of casualties or damage.

The quake was felt in Iran's cities of Orumiyeh, Khoy and Salmas near the border, the official IRNA news agency reported.

It was also felt in Tabriz, an Iranian city about 200 kilometers east of the epicenter, the Mehr news agency reported, quoting the regional governor general, Jafar Zolfaqari.

The tremors were strong enough to cause "scenes of panic among the population of the cities," according to several Iranian media.

In the wake of the destruction, neighboring Israel has offered assistance to Turkey despite recent tension over. 

From the Sunday's Zaman: 

The Israeli daily Haaretz said Barak instructed top officials to contact Ankara, despite the deepening diplomatic rift between the two countries in recent years. Israeli Foreign Ministry officials have also reportedly initiated contact with Ankara in order to estimate the extent of aid required, if at all.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor told Haaretz that, following orders by Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, he had contacted Turkish authorities, saying “Israel's embassy in Ankara has already issued the offer to Turkish officials.” Israel previously sent a search and rescue team to Turkey in 1999 when a major earthquake devastated northwestern Turkey.