A significant earthquake, initially measured at a magnitude of 7.6, shook the region near Tonga in the South Pacific Ocean on Tuesday, leading to coastal evacuations. However, no extensive tsunami alerts were issued.

The United States Geological Survey reported that the earthquake occurred early Tuesday evening, local time, at a depth of around 237 kilometers (148 miles). Earthquakes occurring at shallower depths tend to have a more pronounced impact on the surface.

The epicenter was located offshore, approximately 153 kilometers (95 miles) to the west of Neiafu, which is the second-largest town in Tonga.

As of now, there have been no immediate reports of any damage.

The National Disaster Risk Management Office of Tonga advised residents of the low-lying island nation to evacuate to higher ground or move inland as a precaution.

People should avoid beaches, shorelines, and low-lying coastal areas until an all-clear was given, said a post on the office’s Facebook page.

The USGS did not issue a tsunami warning for the region, and the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii said in a bulletin that there was no tsunami threat because the quake was “located too deep inside the earth.”

Tonga is an archipelago in Polynesia made up of 171 islands with just over 100,000 people, most of whom live on the main island of Tongatapu. Tuesday’s quake was centered nearer to the Vava’u island group.

A person who answered the phone at the Tanoa International Dateline Hotel on the beachfront at Nuku’alofa, which is on Tongatapu, said she wasn’t aware of any damage.

“The whole building shaked. No further damage. Everything was ok,” she said.

Tonga is situated on the Pacific Ring of Fire, the arc of seismic faults where much of the world’s earthquake and volcanic activity occurs. A tsunami set off by a volcanic eruption in 2022 killed three people.

The island nation is about 1,800 kilometers (1,100 miles) northeast of New Zealand, where disaster management officials said Tuesday that there was no tsunami threat to the country.
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Associated Press writer Rod McGuirk contributed from Melbourne, Australia.

Pakistan finds itself in a precarious position as tensions escalate in the conflict involving Iran, with the situation becoming increasingly delicate by the day.

Thus far, Islamabad has treaded carefully, denouncing the attacks on Iran while simultaneously advocating for a reduction in hostilities. However, experts caution that Pakistan may soon find it challenging to avoid the mounting pressures from various sides.

“Pakistan is attempting to position itself as a mediator between the United States and Iran, but the effort lacks conviction,” remarked Edmund Fitton-Brown, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, in an interview with Fox News Digital. “Its track record of avoiding military conflicts is not particularly strong.”

Central to the current tension is a recent defense pact with Saudi Arabia, stipulating that an attack on one nation would be considered an attack on both. This pivotal defense agreement strengthens Pakistan’s ties to Riyadh but simultaneously risks antagonizing Iran.

Pakistan, the only nuclear-armed Muslim state, already has troops stationed in Saudi Arabia for training and defense support and has said there is “no question” of coming to the kingdom’s aid.

“Remember, Pakistan is geographically part of both South Asia and Central Asia, as well as the wider Gulf/MENA region too. Pakistan has always pursued peace, dialogue and order because we know what war does to our region,” Mosharraf Zaidi, spokesperson for foreign media to the Pakistani prime minister, told Fox News Digital.

Within days of the war’s outbreak, the country’s army chief, General Asim Munir, made an “emergency” visit to Saudi Arabia, where top officials discussed joint responses to Iranian strikes. It was the first true test of the pact.

Relations are strong between the two nations, and Riyadh remains a key economic lifeline for Islamabad. Saudi Arabia has already been making arrangements to support energy supplies, as war-driven fuel disruptions hit import-dependent Pakistan.

Yet Pakistan’s relationship with Iran is equally critical. 

The two share a 565-mile border along with deep trade ties and significant religious connections. 

Pakistan is home to the world’s second-largest Shiite community after Iran. Pro-Iran regime protests in the wake of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s assassination turned deadly, forcing military intervention and curfews.

Maintaining ties with Tehran is crucial for containing domestic tensions and staving off an insurgency from the minority Baloch community there.

Iran is also an important economic partner to Pakistan, which has been facing a severe economic crisis. The two conduct significant trade, with a new goal of $10 billion by 2028.

Pakistan’s foreign minister has held “constant conversations” with his Iranian counterpart throughout the conflict. And last week, a Pakistani oil tanker transited the essentially blockaded Strait of Hormuz. Analysts noted it was the first non-Iranian cargo ship to do so since tensions escalated, suggesting that safe passage may have been negotiated. Officials add that more Pakistan-bound oil tankers are likely to cross the strait in the coming days.

A screenshot of a marine traffic terminal showing vessels in the Strait of Hormuz on March 4, 2026. (Kpler/Marine Traffic)

Most of Pakistan’s crude and LNG imports pass through the Strait of Hormuz. But as the war grinds on, analysts warn Pakistan’s room for neutrality is shrinking. 

Pakistan recently went against Iran, backing a Gulf-led resolution at the United Nations condemning regional aggression. Russia and China abstained.

Meanwhile, Iran’s foreign minister just called for regional coordination in separate ​calls with Pakistan, Turkey and Egypt.

Shia Muslims holding portraits of Iran’s slain supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei take part in an anti US-Israel protest in Islamabad on March 6, 2026.  (Aamir Qureshi/ AFP via Getty Images)

At the same time, Islamabad must also navigate relations with Washington, yet another key partner.

Under President Donald Trump’s second term, Pakistan has sought closer relations with the U.S., even floating his name for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Questions are also emerging in Washington. During a White House briefing, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the administration was coordinating with the Pentagon to assess whether Pakistan is supporting Iran, while describing India as a “good actor.”

India’s positioning has added further pressure, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent visit to Israel.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets with Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu in New Delhi, India on Feb. 25, 2026. (Photo by Press Information Bureau (PIB)/Anadolu via Getty Images)

“There is no contradiction in being absolutely committed to peace, dialogue and order. The strong relationships Pakistan has with the United States, with Saudi Arabia, with Iran and with China are a testament to Pakistan’s commitment,” the Pakistani prime minister’s spokesperson, Zaidi said.

So far, Pakistan has effectively positioned itself at the forefront of mediation efforts to end the ongoing conflict, leveraging its ties with all three powerhouses.

Reports indicate that high-level talks between the U.S. and Iran are set for Islamabad as early as this weekend.

“Pakistan wants to matter to the U.S. and to be a better partner than India. Because the Afghan Taliban have alienated Islamabad since 2021, there are few remaining sore points between the U.S. and Pakistan, with the latter able to present as an ally against terrorism,” Fitton-Brown said. “And most regional parties want to see the crisis end sooner rather than later. But nobody wants to see the Islamic Republic strengthened in Iran.”

The spiraling war comes at a critical time for Pakistan’s already stretched military. Tensions with India remain elevated, while border clashes, airstrikes, drone attacks and rising civilian casualties have become the norm with once friendly neighbor Afghanistan.

The nations nosedived into an “all-out war,” just days before the Iran conflict broke out, and the violence shows no signs of easing after fresh Pakistani strikes recently hit the Afghan capital city of Kabul.

Afghan Taliban fighters patrol near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border in Spin Boldak, Kandahar Province, following exchanges of fire between Pakistani and Afghan forces. (REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo)

“This geography and the region’s history is why Pakistan steadfastly rejects India’s efforts at regional hegemony, it is why Pakistan is pursuing a termination of the Afghan Taliban regime’s support for terrorist groups,” Zaidi said. “We seek a complete cessation of terrorism emanating from territory currently controlled by the Afghan Taliban.”

With Pakistan already managing tensions on both its eastern border with India and its western frontier with Afghanistan, a destabilized Iran could push that strain further.

“If Islamabad is destabilized, it will be extremely bad news regionally and globally,” Edmund Fitton-Brown told Fox. “The idea of a nuclear power under jihadi rule doesn’t bear thinking about.”