An tsunami alert has been issued off the island of Crete as tourists have been warned to "move away from the coast."

It comes after a 6.1 magnitude quake hit off the Greek island, causing tremors felt across Turkey and Israel.

The European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre says tsunami alerts have been issued while the risk is assessed.

"Depending on the distance of the earthquake from the coastline, the tsunami could be local (<100 km), regional (<1,000 km) or distant (>1,000 km)," they said in a statement.

The quake struck off the coast of Crete

The tremor, which hit 79km off the city of Heraklion at 6.19 am (3.19 GMT) on Thursday, jolted locals and tourists holidaying on the island at the start of the summer season, according to reports on social media.

CCTV video posted on Facebook showed plant pots on a balcony shaking for seconds.