TEHRAN: Two people on Tuesday were pulled alive from the rubble of weekend quakes the destroyed villages in Iran's northwest, state media reported -- days after officials called a halt to rescue operations.
The two were plucked from the smashed remains of their home after being detected by search dogs, IRIB state television and the official IRNA news agency reported, citing regional emergency service workers.
IRNA said the pair, both in good health, were saved in a village near the town of Varzaqan, northeast of the city of Tabriz.
The hamlet was one of hundreds decimated by Saturday's twin quakes measuring 6.4 and 6.3 on the moment magnitude scale that killed 306 people and injured 3,000 others, according to an official toll.
The pair were rescued two days after Iranian Interior Minister Moustafa Mohammad-Najjar and his aide in charge of disaster management, Hossein Ghadami, declared a halt to rescue operations.
The officials had said there were no more survivors to be found.
Separately, the Fars news agency reported that an unspecified number of bodies were recovered on Tuesday, including that of a 27-year-old woman in the village.
Some officials and members of the Iranian public have criticised the official reaction to the earthquake, while others praised the rapid response of emergency services.
Iran's Red Crescent notably said it had refused offers of help from countries including Germany, Armenia, Turkey and Taiwan.
But Vice President Mohammad Reza Rahimi contradicted that on Monday by saying that, "under the current circumstances, (Iran) is now prepared to accept help from other countries for quake victims," IRNA reported.
The United States said it had also offered assistance but had received no reply from Iran, with which it has no direct diplomatic ties.
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