306 killed in Iran quakes, health minister says

Two quakes registering magnitudes of 6.3 and 6.4 hit the towns of Ahar and Varzeqan and nearby villages in the province of East Azerbaijanon Saturday.
On Sunday, the Interior Ministry put the death toll at 227.
The health minister said more victims had died of their injuries.
Many of the injured had to be transferred to nearby cities for treatment due to the lack of hospitals in the immediate area.
The number of injured was estimated to be as high as 2,000.
The minister said about 160,000 people were believed to have lost their homes.
She added that all bodies had been recovered from the debris.
Rescue operations had finished and the government announced that reconstruction had started, funded by a special budget announced by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.//DPA