LIVE UPDATE
A magnitude 7.8 earthquake has knocked down multiple buildings in southeast Turkey and northern Syria.
- The number of people who have died in Turkey and Syria has risen to above 41,000
- The 7.8-magnitude earthquake jolted residents from their beds around 4 a.m. Monday, sending tremors as far away as Lebanon and Israel.
- The earthquake’s epicenter was 23 kilometers (14.2 miles) east of Nurdagi, in Turkey’s Gaziantep province, at a depth of 24.1 kilometers (14.9 miles), the United States Geological Survey (USGS) said.
15 February 2023:
Quakes death toll crosses 41,000
- The death toll from the Turkey-Syria earthquakes has crossed 41,000.
- Turkish authorities say 35,418 people have been killed in the country. Syrian government, UN say more than 5,800 people dead in Syria.
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A tale of two presidents, one crying and one laughing
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his wife visited the city of Kahramanmaras the day after the earthquakes to reassure his people about the progress of the work being done following the disaster. He walked through the streets meeting families and weeping with them; Read more here
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42-year-old rescued in Turkey after 222 hours
A 42-year-old woman has been rescued from the rubble of a building in the southern Turkish city of Kahramanmaras, where she was trapped for almost 222 hours.
TV footage showed rescue workers carrying the woman, identified as Melike Imamoglu, strapped on a stretcher to a nearby ambulance.
The astounding rescues comes as survivor discoveries have slowed on the ninth day of rescue operations.
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Rescue operations continue in Turkey
Search and rescue operations were continuing in southern Turkey, even as hope of finding survivors faded nine days since the initial earthquakes.
The Turkish government has said that 74 teams from abroad had travel to the country to help in rescues since the earthquakes first hit on February 6.
Despite the closing window for finding people alive, there were some bright spots on Wednesday, including a 42-year-old woman pulled from the rubble in Kahramanmaras after 222 hours.
Jordan’s foreign minister arrives in Damascus: Report
Jordan’s foreign minister has arrived in Damascus on the first high-level visit since 2012 after the Syrian civil war started in 2011, an official source told Reuters news agency.
Ayman Safadi will later head to Turkey to show “solidarity” after the quake, the source said. Jordan’s foreign ministry had earlier confirmed the planned visits.
Jordan has been a major provider of aid to both countries since the earthquakes.
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Over 50K buildings need to be destroyed: minister
Türkiye’s Environment, Urban Planning and Climate Change Minister Murat Kurum said 50.576 damaged buildings have to be demolished in the earthquake-hit areas.
According to the damage assessment findings, the government has inspected 387,346 buildings in the country’s 10 provinces and 279,655 of them are lightly damaged or non-damaged buildings, he stated.
“We will quickly demolish what needs to be demolished and build safe buildings,” the minister said.
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Woman saved 222 hours after deadly quake
Turkish search and rescue teams have saved 45-year-old Melike Imamoglu from the rubble 222 hours after the February 6 disaster.
The miracle rescue on the tenth day of the disaster on Wednesday took place in Kahramanmaras, the epicentre of the two powerful earthquakes that affected about 15 million people.
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Over 76 states sent rescue teams to Türkiye: Ankara
Turkish Foreign Ministry has released information on how many foreign search and rescue teams and foreign personnel are taking place in earthquake-hit areas in southeastern Türkiye.
According to the statement 100 states offered to help Türkiye while rescue teams from 76 countries are in the field. A total of 7,606 foreign personnel are involved in search and rescue operations in the region.
Türkiye also expects two more states to send their teams and 712 more foreign personnel will join the rescue effort.
Meanwhile, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu announced that 12 foreign rescue teams have completed their mission in the designated areas and have returned to their countries as of Wednesday.
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UNICEF: Millions of children affected by quakes
A total of 4.6 million children living in the 10 provinces in Türkiye struck by the two earthquakes were affected, while 2.5 million children in Syria were affected, according to UNICEF spokesman James Elder.
Elder expressed concern that thousands of children may have lost their lives due to the earthquakes and underscored the need for additional support for children and their families.
Kenneth Crossley, Country Director and Representative for the World Food Program (WFP) in Syria, pointed out that there is a triangle between Aleppo, Hama and Latakia that was severely affected by the earthquake, noting that not just one group but all people were affected by the earthquakes. Food aid was provided to approximately 180,000 people in northwest Syria, he added.
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Metallica’s foundation donates $250,000 fo quake elief
American metal band Metallica’s foundation has donated $250,000 relief efforts in Turkey and Syria.
“We’re at a loss for words to describe the devastation in southern Turkey and northern Syria,” the foundation, known as All Within My Hands — named after one of the band’s songs — said on Twitter.
It said it would contribute grants of $125,000 each to Direct Relief and World Central Kitchen, two non-profits “to assist in funding much-needed medical aid and meals,” the foundation said in a statement on Tuesday.
We’re at a loss for words to describe the devastation in southern Turkey and northern Syria. The 7.8 magnitude earthquake has reduced the entire region to rubble. The death toll continues to rise, tragically exceeding 36,000 lives lost… (1/3) pic.twitter.com/cbxmHUKBS1
— All Within My Hands Foundation (@AWMHFoundation) February 14, 2023
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Colombia sends 6 tons of humanitarian aid to Turkey
Colombia has sent six tons of humanitarian aid to Turkey, the Turkish ambassador in Bogota has said.
Beste Pehlivan Sun told Anadolu news agency that aid materials consisted of a large number of blankets, winter clothes, and hygiene materials.
“Our Colombian friends, our citizens living here, and our business people have taken action to heal the wounds. As a result of a very intense aid campaign at our embassy and Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency, we are sending the aid to our country with the contribution of Turkish Airlines,” Sun said.
On Tuesday, Colombia also sent a team of 20 experts to Turkey to support the disaster victims, according to authorities.
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Pakistan sends winterised tents to Turkey
Pakistan has sent 6.7 tons of relief goods, primarily winterised tents for Turkey earthquake victims, according to the country’s disaster management authority.
The shipment was dispatched through a Pakistan International Airlines flight, said a statement from the National Disaster Management Authority.
Islamabad has already dispatched over 150 tons of relief goods, including tents, clothes, and food items, aside from army and civilian-trained volunteers and rescue teams to Turkey’s quake-stricken regions, according to Anadolu news agency.
Several Pakistani charities, including Al-Khidmat Foundation, Baitussalam Welfare Trust, and Edhi Foundation, have also been engaged in the relief and rescue operations in different earthquake-hit areas.
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Turkish stock exchange reopens
Turkey’s stock exchange, which has been closed for the past week following the earthquakes, has reopened.
Borsa Istanbul’s BIST 100 index opened with a 5.8 percent gain over February 7, when it had seen a sharp fall in the aftermath of the disasters. By the time the exchange was temporarily shut on February 8, the index had fallen 16 percent compared to pre-quake levels.
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NATO to send 1,000 containers to Turkey
NATO has said it will send more than 1,000 shipping containers to Turkey to help provide shelter for earthquake survivors.
“This semi-permanent shelter is capable of housing at least 2,000 people displaced by the earthquakes in Turkiye,” said a tweet from NATO’s Joint Force Command in Naples.
The containers, which are currently in Italy’s Taranto, will be sent to Turkey next week, the alliance said.
This semi-permanent shelter is capable of housing at least 2,000 people displaced by the earthquakes in #Türkiye, and consists of more than 1,000 shipping containers. pic.twitter.com/matLGt2XJg
— NATO JFC Naples (@JFC_Naples) February 14, 2023
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The dogs helping find earthquake survivors in Turkey
The dogs are trained to sniff out a human scent, stand at the spot and bark loudly to alert their handlers to the spot where they have found it. A second dog is then released to see if it can confirm the findings. If the two dogs confirm, this allows human rescuers to concentrate their digging efforts on that particular spot until they find the person. Read more here
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Britain’s King Charles meets Turkey-Syria earthquake volunteers
Britain’s King Charles has met volunteers from the Turkish and Syrian diasporas in London to express his support after more than 37,000 people died and thousands left homeless by the recent earthquake in Turkey and northwestern Syria.
Charles shook hands with charity workers during a visit to West London Turkish Volunteers (WLTV), and chatted with them as they packed scarves, blankets, jumpers, and packets of biscuits as part of earthquake relief efforts.
He also formally launched Syria’s House, a temporary Syrian community tent in Trafalgar Square in central London, where he met the capital’s mayor, Sadiq Khan, among others.
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UN delegation visits quake-hit Idlib in Syria
A UN delegation made its first-hand tour in the Syrian opposition-held areas that were badly affected by last week’s devastating earthquakes.
The UN delegation entered the Syrian territory from the Bab al Hawa border crossing with Türkiye and headed towards Idlib province in northwestern Syria.
The delegation is scheduled to meet with the heads of humanitarian organizations and civil society groups involved in relief efforts for the quake victims in the area, sources told Anadolu.
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Medical supplies worth $846,000 sent to Türkiye, Syria: India
India has sent emergency medical supplies worth approximately $846,000 that include life-saving medicines, protective gear, and critical care equipment since last week’s deadly earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria, the Health Ministry said.
The Indian government is presently sending relief materials, medicines, equipment, and rescuers to earthquake-hit Türkiye and Syria under “Operation Dost,” or Friendship Operation.
So far, the government has dispatched seven flights to the two countries, the ministry said in a statement.
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WHO launches $43M appeal to support earthquake response in Syria, Türkiye
“I expect this to at least double over the coming days, as we get a better assessment of the massive scale of this crisis and the needs,” said WHO Regional Director for Europe Hans Kluge in a press briefing related to urgent health needs and response in Türkiye following last week’s earthquakes.
Kluge said that the money will be used to “Ensure access to the most vulnerable and hard-to-reach populations, provide trauma care and post-trauma rehabilitation and provide essential medicines and emergency kits to fill urgent healthcare gaps.”
It will also be used to “deliver vital mental and psychosocial support to the affected populations and ensure continuity of routine health services, especially for women, children, the elderly, and those with non-communicable diseases,” he added.
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Over 8,000 people pulled alive from quake rubble: Erdogan
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said rescue teams have pulled out more than 8,000 people alive from the quake debris since the strong tremors struck southeastern Türkiye last week.
He also said a large number of over 81,000 people injured in the earthquakes have been discharged from hospitals.
“I would like to thank once again to all the friendly and sisterly countries that have been collecting aid for our nation day and night, supporting our search and rescue efforts with their teams, and not forgetting us in their prayers,” Erdogan added in a video message sent to the World Government Summit in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates.
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Greek Orthodox churches in UK collect donations for quake survivors
All Greek Orthodox Churches in the UK have collected donations for victims of the earthquakes.
The move came by the order of the head of the Greek Orthodox Church in the UK, an incredible gesture given the decades-long political dispute between Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots.
“Our hearts are broken seeing what happened in Türkiye, that was hit by earthquakes,” the priest, Revd. Dr. Chrysostom Tympas, said during a Sunday service at the Greek Orthodox Church Saint Anargye in London.
Brothers rescued 198 hours after earthquakes in Turkiye
Rescue teams have saved two brothers — 17-year-old Muhammed Enes Yeninar and 21-year-old Baki Yeninarn — after they survived 198 hours under rubble in quake-hit Kahramanmaras.
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Damages from Turkey quake estimated to surpass $20bn
Damages from deadly earthquakes in Turkey will probably exceed $20bn, according to the risk modelling company Verisk.
Only a fraction of the damages – likely more than $1bn – is covered by insurance, Verisk said.
Earthquakes are relatively common in Turkey, and despite regulations to build to protect against earthquakes, results have been “mixed”, Verisk said.
Structures compliant with building codes “have performed relatively well, while many others have experienced significant damage and collapse during earthquakes”, it said.
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Relief effort a marathon: Turkish Red Crescent
Kerem Kinik, president of the Turkish Red Crescent, told Al Jazeera the relief efforts would continue for a minimum of 18 months.
Kinik said that international assistance would be needed in what he described as a marathon operation.
In the short term, Kinik said there continued to be a shortage of shelter and tents and warned of the risk for the spread of communicable diseases amid the challenging conditions.
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Rescuers find another survivor in Türkiye’s Adiyaman
Rescuers in Türkiye have saved an 18-year-old man under a collapsed building in the southeastern city of Adiyaman.
Reports identified the teenager as Muhammed Cetin, who was rescued 198 hours after last week’s disaster.
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President Recep Tayyip Erdogan sends a video message for World Government Summit hosted by UAE
LIVE: President Recep Tayyip Erdogan sends a video message for World Government Summit hosted by UAE
https://t.co/nOeYO5Y3I7— PresserWatch (@PresserWatch) February 14, 2023
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Turkey plans tax exemption for share buybacks: Turkish state media
The Turkish Treasury is planning to provide tax exemptions in order to increase share buybacks of companies listed on the Borsa Istanbul stock exchange, the state-run Anadolu agency reports.
When the Borsa Istanbul reopens for trading after a shutdown of five days due to the devastating earthquakes, the authorities will announce the tax relief to encourage share buybacks of companies, Anadolu said, without citing a source.
The decision was taken at a meeting of finance minister Nureddin Nebati with officials from the central bank, the capital markets board and the Borsa Istanbul.
Anadolu said, according to the decision, the listed companies will be able to buy back shares without paying a retention tax of 15 percent. Bloomberg reported that the stock exchange is expected to reopen on Wednesday.
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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his wife Emine Erdogan visited earthquake survivors hospitalized in Istanbul
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his wife Emine Erdogan visited earthquake survivors hospitalized in Istanbul#TurkeyEarthquake pic.twitter.com/Fa0kIvMRbb
— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) February 14, 2023
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Search operations in northwest Syria about to end: Rescue group
“It’s about to come to a close. The indications we have are that there are not any (survivors) but we are trying to do our final checks and on all sites,” said Raed al-Saleh.
The group also said they were also collecting the names of the missing people in the enclave.
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Search for survivors enters final hours
The desperate searches for earthquake survivors in Turkey and Syria are entering their final hours, with experts saying the window for rescues has nearly closed given the length of time that has passed and the severity of the building collapses. Read more here
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Brothers rescued 198 hours after earthquakes in Turkiye
Rescue teams have saved two brothers — 17-year-old Muhammed Enes Yeninar and 21-year-old Baki Yeninarn — after they survived 198 hours under rubble in quake-hit Kahramanmaras.
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Rescuers find another survivor in Türkiye’s Adiyaman
Rescuers in Türkiye have saved an 18-year-old man under a collapsed building in the southeastern city of Adiyaman.
Reports identified the teenager as Muhammed Cetin, who was rescued 198 hours after last week’s disaster.
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White Helmets say search efforts for quake survivors in northwest Syria about to end
Search operations for more survivors beneath the rubble are about to end in the opposition north west of Syria eight days after the devastating earthquake, the White Helmets main rescue group has said.
“It’s about to come to a close. The indications we have are that there are not any (survivors), but we are trying to do our final checks and on all sites,” said Raed al Saleh who heads the White Helmets group that has carried out the major rescue operations in the devastated region.
The group, which has rescue workers across the region where whole neighbourhoods and villages were wiped out, said they were also collecting names of the missing people in the enclave where the group’s latest death toll stood at 3,167 with thousands injured in the opposition-controlled areas.
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Russia says more than 300 troops helping Syria recover from earthquake
More than 300 Russian servicemen and 60 units of special military equipment are helping Syria in its response to a devastating earthquake that struck more than a week ago, according to Russia’s defence ministry.
“Servicemen of the Russian group of forces continue to carry out activities to clear rubble and eliminate the consequences of earthquakes,” the defence ministry said in a statement on the Telegram messaging app on Tuesday, referring to Russian forces stationed in Syria.
Regime media said 1,414 people were killed in the regime-controlled areas of the country. The White Helments said that 3,167 people were killed in the opposition-controlled areas, bringing the total death toll in Syria at 4,581. However, Russian forces only managed to help those in the regime-controlled areas.
Russia, which backs Syrian leader Bashar al Assad, has been a dominant military force in Syria since launching air strikes and ground operations there in 2015 during the the Battle of Aleppo (2012-2016).
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Syria agrees to open two new crossings for quake aid: US
The Syrian regime of Bashar al Assad has agreed to open two new crossing points from Türkiye to the country’s opposition-held northwest to deliver desperately needed aid and equipment to help millions of earthquake victims, the United Nations announced.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres welcomed the agreement to open crossing points at Bab Al-Salam and Al Raée for an initial period of three months.
Currently, the UN has only been permitted to deliver aid to the northwest Idlib area through a single crossing at Bab Al-Hawa, at Syrian ally Russia’s insistence.
The announcement followed a meeting in Damascus earlier Monday between Assad and UN humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths, who spent the weekend visiting areas hit by the disaster.
Opposition-run rescue group criticised the UN decision, saying it gave the Assad regime “free political gain.”
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After the earthquakes, war-hit Syrians struggle to get aid
After years of war, residents in northwest Syria affected by the massive earthquakes are grappling with their new and worsening reality.
The earthquakes displaced many in Syria for a second time, forcing some to sleep under olive groves in winter conditions.
One week after the devastating earthquakes, the United Nations has acknowledged an international failure to help Syrian quake victims.
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Two people rescued in Turkey nearly 198 hours after quakes
Chances of finding survivors more than one week after the deadly quakes are shrinking fast with the UN saying that the focus is switching from rescue operations to shelter, food and schooling.
Yet, rare stories of survival are still emerging.
A 17-year-old and an unidentified man were rescued from the rubble of an apartment block in Turkey’s Kahramanmaras province nearly 198 hours since the first earthquake struck Turkey and Syria, broadcaster CNN Turk said.
It showed rescue workers carrying the two people, strapped onto stretchers, to waiting ambulances.
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Israeli flights to Turkey to resume
Israeli airlines will resume direct flights to Turkey as a mark of a continued improvement in bilateral relations, Israeli foreign minister Eli Cohen has said.
The first such flight will depart on Thursday, Cohen told reporters during what he described as a solidarity visit to Turkey, which credited Israel for sending relief delegations after last week’s earthquake.
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Excavators start removing debris in Turkey’s Hatay
Excavators have begun removing debris from an urban area in Turkey’s hard-hit Hatay province, drone footage showed, as the operation to find survivors started drawing to a close.
Several large hydraulic excavators near the city of Antakya scraped at piles of masonry or knocked down the tops of teetering concrete buildings, footage showed on Monday, with clouds of dust rising from the rubble as slabs of concrete fell.
Workers in high-visibility jackets dotted the desolate expanse of what was once a residential area while a few clusters of onlookers watched from a safe distance.
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Search and rescue teams in Turkey’s Hatay reached a voice under the rubble in the 185th hour
Search and rescue teams in Turkey’s Hatay reached a voice under the rubble in the 185th hour.#Hatay #TurkeyEarthquake #Syria_earthquake pic.twitter.com/I1QxbRMp7f
— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) February 14, 2023
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Uighur volunteers comfort survivors in Türkiye’s quake-hit Kahramanmaras province
“As soon as we saw the extent of the destruction, we decided to come to Türkiye’s Kahramanmaras province to help however we can,” Seyit Tumturk, an Uighur Turk who hails from East Turkistan, said.
Tumturk is the head of the East Turkistan Culture and Solidarity Association and the East Turkistan National Assembly. Both organizations are based in Türkiye’s central Kayseri province.
“After gathering aid contributions in Kayseri, we immediately set out for Kahramanmaras with a truckload of food, clothing, blankets, and mattresses,” said Tumturk, who has been living in Türkiye since 1965.
“Since our arrival here, we have hardly slept at all,” he added.
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Italian goalkeeper Buffon’s gloves put on sale for earthquake victims in Türkiye
The gloves of Italian veteran goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon were put on sale to help earthquake victims in Türkiye.
Atalanta defender Merih Demiral said on Twitter that he auctioned the signed gloves of 45-year-old Buffon so that all proceeds from the sale will be donated to a Turkish NGO.
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Drone footage show massive search and rescue efforts at earthquake-hit region of Türkiye
Drone footage show massive search and rescue efforts at earthquake-hit region of Türkiye.#TurkeyEarthquake #Syria_earthquake pic.twitter.com/lUfYHuxYGJ
— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) February 13, 2023
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NATO in ‘strong solidarity’ with quake-hit Türkiye: Stoltenberg
“Our thoughts remain with the Turkish people following last week’s devastating earthquakes,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said at a press conference in Brussels.
“Thousands of emergency response personnel from the NATO allies have been supporting the relief efforts, including with search and rescue teams, firefighters, medical personnel, and seismic experts.”
He announced that the alliance and its members have agreed “to deploy shelter facilities to help accommodate people displaced by the earthquakes.”
“I am not able to give you an exact date, but allies and NATO are working hard to deliver as much support as quickly as possible,” he explained.
UNHCR calls for ‘much more support’ to provide aid in Syria
Kelly Clements, deputy high commissioner of the UN’s refugee agency (UNHCR), says the earthquake has caused “complete devastation” in parts of Syria. Read more here
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Turkey offers to open two border crossings into NW Syria
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu says he has offered to open two border crossings with Syria for the international community to send humanitarian aid to the quake-hit northern parts of Turkey’s neighbour.
“We told the international community and the UN that they could send humanitarian aid through the two gates under our control,” Cavusoglu said during a joint news conference with his Libyan counterpart, Najla al-Mangoush, in Ankara.
The diplomat referred to two border gates in Kilis province.
“It is out of the question for Türkiye to open border crossings in places [in Syria] controlled by the PKK and YPG,” he said, referring to two Kurdish groups that Ankara labels as “terrorists”.
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“I want Baba”
The first words from Alaa when she saw the light from under the rubble. Our teams rescued her, her father, mother, and her brother, but she lost one of her brother #Syria.
-Ramadieh, west of #Idlib, #Syria, Monday, February 7. pic.twitter.com/CKSjfcGRps— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) February 13, 2023
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Turkey arrests property developers in collapsed buildings investigation
Turkey has issued more than 100 arrest warrants in connection with the construction of buildings that collapsed in last week’s earthquakes.
Civil engineers say many projects in southeastern Turkey were not built to code.
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Quake survivors need papers to come to Germany: Foreign ministry
With its large Turkish and Syrian communities, Germany offers the prospect of shelter and care to earthquake survivors with relatives in the country – but only if they can fulfil existing visa requirements, the foreign ministry says.
Berlin’s goal is to make it quicker and easier for such people to come to Germany within the existing framework, a ministry spokesperson said.
“Missing passports are, of course, a problem. Those who have lost everything are unlikely to have a passport, but we cannot simply undermine the passport sovereignty of the Turkish authorities and issue travel documents for foreigners just like that,” the spokesperson told reporters at a regular government news conference in Berlin.
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Earthquakes could cost Turkey $84bn: Business group
Turkey’s worst earthquake in almost a century and the aftershocks that have followed have left a trail of destruction that could cost Ankara up to $84.1bn, a business group says.
The report by the Turkish Enterprise and Business Confederation said the cost would include an estimated $70.8bn from the repair of thousands of homes, $10.4bn from loss of national income and $2.9bn from loss of working days.
It said the main costs would be rebuilding housing, transmission lines and infrastructure and meeting the short-, medium- and long-term shelter needs of the hundreds of thousands of people left homeless.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said the state will complete housing reconstruction within a year and the government is preparing a programme to “make the country stand up again”.
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Seventy-year-old rescued 178 hours after earthquakes
A 70-year-old woman, Nuray Gurbuz, was rescued from the rubble of a collapsed three-storey building in Turkey’s Hatay province 178 hours after deadly earthquakes hit the region.
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Girl rescued in Turkey after 178 hours in rubble
A girl named Miray has been rescued from the rubble of an apartment block in the southern Turkish city of Adiyaman after being trapped for 178 hours, a minister and media reports said.
Broadcaster CNN Turk said the girl is six years old and rescuers were also close to reaching her older sister. Turkish Transport Minister Adil Karaismailoglu had said earlier that she is four years old.
Rescuers working to save mother and child in Kahramanmaras
Reporting from Kahramanmaras, Al Jazeera’s Stefanie Dekker said rescue workers were believed to be just metres away from reaching a mother and child who thermal imaging has indicated may still be alive.
“They are now tunneling from two angles … to try and get to the area where they are believed to be. But is extremely dangerous work,” Dekker said from the city, which was closest to the initial earthquake’s epicentre.
She added that family were waiting at the scene during the more than 24-hour effort, in which rescuers had to contend with two more earthquakes overnight.
“It’s incredibly difficult and sensitive work,” she said.
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‘Whole world let the Syrian people down’, says survivor in rebel-held northwest
Anger over the lack of aid has grown in northwest Syria, where survivors say the international community has abandoned them.
“The whole world let the Syrian people down. If this destruction was in Europe or a foreign country, the whole world would have gathered to rescue those killed – but here, no one [cares],” said Abdel-Monem Qassem al-Razouq, standing in front of ruins in Sarmada.
“I am here to watch and remember, there are memories here. I see my sister’s dress, her son’s clothes and all of them. Their smell is here. When they remove everything I won’t come.”
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Earthquakes in Turkiye and Syria are “divine justice”: Israeli Rabbi
“We do not know what accounts [need to be settled] with Türkiye, which has defamed us in every possible arena. But if God reveals to us and tells us that he is going to judge all our enemies, we just have to look and understand what is going on around us,” Eliyahu said in the article cited by The Times of Israel newspaper. Read more here
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Dog helps lost aid team reach victims in quake-hit Türkiye
Dog helps lost aid team reach victims in quake-hit Türkiye
Turkish team manages to deliver aid to earthquake victims in Kahramanmaras province after dog shows them the way.#Kahramanmaras #Turkey pic.twitter.com/7KBN8cNJCf
— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) February 13, 2023
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A woman pulled out from rubble 160 hours after twin quakes hit southern Turkish city of Hatay
A woman pulled out from rubble 160 hours after twin quakes hit southern Turkish city of Hatay.#Turkey #Syria_earthquake #Hatay pic.twitter.com/yKJGmUVfSU
— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) February 13, 2023
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‘We’re doing this for God’: Syrian volunteer grave digger
Men were rushing back and forth, unloading bodies wrapped in shrouds or body bags from trucks and passing them to others who were digging trenches big enough to accommodate 100 to 130 people a day. Some bodies had to be lifted and carried by two men. Many others were tiny, clutched in the arms of men with shock written all over their faces as they carried the babies over to the trenches. Read more here
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Only bones left’: Turkey families look for remains as hopes fade
After the fire, no more sounds came from the wreckage. Heat still emanated from the building remnants on Sunday, almost five days later, as diggers worked to painstakingly sift through and clear the rubble. Avsaroglu no longer held out any hope for his family’s survival. “This is the seventh day now, everyone is tired, we just want to find the bodies in one piece. But we can’t find anything, probably they all got burned,” he said. Read more here
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China sends emergency items to Syria, asks Chinese rescue teams to stand down
China sent the second batch of supplies to earthquake-hit areas of Syria and has asked Chinese rescue teams that have not left for disaster zones in Türkiye and Syria to cancel trips in order to ease the burden on rescue operations.
The China Association for Disaster Prevention earlier called for Chinese rescue teams to cancel or suspend their trips to not increase the burden on hard-hit areas, and avoid risks due to inclement weather.
Cotton tents, family kits, jackets and other daily necessities, as well as medical supplies, were being provided to Syria by the Red Cross Society of China, CCTV reported on Monday.
China has already committed financial aid to Türkiye and Syria, and has sent a number of rescue teams from several parts of the country, including 82 members dispatched by the Chinese government, as the death toll tops 33,000 as of Monday morning.
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Aftershock triggers panic among rescuers in Kahramanmaras
An aftershock reportedly measured at an intensity of 4.7 hit the Turkish province of Kahramanmaras late on Sunday triggering panic among rescuers as well as residents in the area.
Video clips posted on social media showed people rushing to get away from the rubble and damaged buildings as rescuers called for calm.
There have been hundreds of aftershocks that hit the southern region of Türkiye since the disaster a week ago.
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Aid from Indonesia arrives in Turkey
Two Indonesian Air Force aircraft have brought the first batch aid from the country to Turkey, according to Anadolu news agency.
The aircraft brought rescue personnel and heavy and light equipment along, along with further humanitarian aid, and landed at Adana Airport on Monday.
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52 UN trucks have entered northwest Syria from Turkey: Crossing official
Fifty-two United Nations trucks have entered opposition controlled northwest Syria from its only land crossing with Turkey, according to a spokesman for the Bab al-Hawa crossing.
Mazen Alloush the spokesman for the administration that controls the sole access point, told Al Jazeera the convoys included six trucks on Thursday, 14 trucks on Friday, 22 trucks on Saturday and 10 trucks Sunday.
They were expecting a 6-truck convoy to go through on Monday, Alloush said.
Trucks carrying tent and shelter kits provided by the United Nations in the aftermath of a deadly earthquake enter Syria’s Bab al-Hawa border crossing [Omar Haj Kadour/AFP]
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First European aid shipment reaches Syria
The first European aid shipment since the quakes has reached government-held areas in Syria, according to the Syrian Red Crescent.
The shipment came through Italy.
Italy’s envoy to Damascus previously told Reuters news agency the country was sending a 30-tonne shipment that included four ambulances and 13 pallets of medical equipment.
The shipment was sent to the Syrian government.
The first ever European shipment of assistances reached #Syria from Italy through @SYRedCrescent pic.twitter.com/cq5jpqGBVp
— Syrian Red Crescent (@SYRedCrescent) February 13, 2023
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More than 2,000 buildings destroyed, severely damaged in northwest Syria
The Syrian Civil Defence group has said that some 550 buildings were completely destroyed in rebel-held territory in northwestern Syria following last week’s earthquakes.
More than 1,570 were also severely damaged, said the group, also known as the White Helmets.
Volunteers have begun opening roads that were partially or completely closed by rubble in several areas of northwest Syria, the group tweeted.
1/2 – Our teams continue search operations and recover those trapped under the rubble of buildings destroyed by the #earthquake. Today, Sunday, February 12, our teams began opening roads that were partially or completely closed by rubble in several areas of northwest #Syria. pic.twitter.com/doBSAUhKxy
— The White Helmets (@SyriaCivilDef) February 12, 2023
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US calls on all parties in Syria to allow aid access
The US has called on all parties in Syria to immediately grant humanitarian access to all those in need across the country.
“All humanitarian assistance must be permitted to move through all border crossings, and distribution of aid must be permitted to all affected areas without delay,” a spokesperson for the White House National Security Council said.
Washington called on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to grant immediate access to humanitarian assistance to all those in need, without exception, and urged him to follow through on a blanket authorisation for humanitarian assistance deliveries.
A UN spokesperson said earlier that earthquake aid from government-held parts of Syria into opposition-controlled territory has been held up by “approval issues” with one armed group.
Of the 3,500 deaths so far reported in Syria, the bulk occurred in the northwest, in territory largely held by the Hay’et Tahrir al-Sham.
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US urges UN vote on aid access to Syria via Turkey
The US has called for the UN Security Council to “vote immediately” to authorise the delivery of UN aid to rebel-held northwest Syria through more border crossings from Turkey.
Since 2014, the UN has been able to deliver aid to millions of people in need in the northwest part of war-torn Syria through Turkey under a Security Council mandate. But it is currently restricted to using just one border crossing.
“Right now, every hour matters,” Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the US ambassador to the UN, said in a statement to the Reuters news agency. “People in the affected areas are counting on us.”
“We cannot let them down — we must vote immediately on a resolution to heed the UN’s call for authorisation of additional border crossings for the delivery of humanitarian assistance,” she said. “It’s time to move with urgency and purpose.”
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UN aid chief: We failed people in northwest Syria
The United Nations’ top humanitarian relief official, Martin Griffiths, admitted the UN had failed to provide help to people in Syria’s opposition-controlled region since Monday’s devastating earthquake.
“We have so far failed the people in northwest Syria. They rightly feel abandoned. Looking for international help that hasn’t arrived,” Griffiths said in a tweet.
“My duty and our obligation is to correct this failure as fast as we can. That’s my focus now,” he added during a visit to the border area.
At the #Türkiye–#Syria border today.
We have so far failed the people in north-west Syria.
They rightly feel abandoned. Looking for international help that hasn’t arrived.
My duty and our obligation is to correct this failure as fast as we can.
That’s my focus now.— Martin Griffiths (@UNReliefChief) February 12, 2023
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Qatar provides earthquake aid to Syria’s White Helmets
Qatar has provided help to northwestern Syria’s aid group, the White Helmets, to support their earthquake search and rescue operations, the Qatar Fund for Development said.
The aid includes ambulance repairs and fuel to operate heavy vehicles, it added.
“The road ahead is long, but we can’t face this disaster without your help,” the White Helmets wrote on Twitter, thanking Qatar.
The White Helmets, a group of 3,000 volunteer rescuers, has sharply criticised the lack of aid reaching the opposition-held areas where they work.
On Saturday, the group said it had not rescued anyone since Thursday and that it was now working to remove the bodies from the rubble.
1/2- We express our deepest heartfelt gratitude for the generosity of @qatar_fund. We are grateful to our brothers and sisters in #Qatar for their support in our emergency operations to the #earthquake. The road ahead is long, but we can’t face this disaster without your help. https://t.co/tOk5GmOWYQ
— The White Helmets (@SyriaCivilDef) February 12, 2023
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First European earthquake relief to Syria arrives in Beirut
A 30-tonne shipment of humanitarian aid from the Italian government – including four ambulances and 13 pallets of medical equipment – has landed in Beirut en route to Damascus in the first European earthquake relief to Syria.
The European Union’s envoy to Syria, Dan Stoenescu, said the EU was encouraging member states to provide help and that sanctions “do not impede the delivery of humanitarian aid”.
But he said the EU was seeking “sufficient safeguards” to ensure that help provided would reach vulnerable people, adding the Syrian government had a “record of aid diversion”.
“We call the authorities in Damascus not to politicise the humanitarian aid delivery, and to engage in good faith with all humanitarian partners and UN agencies to help people,” Stoenescu said.
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El Salvador teams with Turkish responders pulled out a 5-year-old child and 30-year-old woman from the quake rubble in Kahramanmaras, southern Türkiye, as El Salvador President Nayib Bukele shares the news on Twitter in Turkish#TurkeySyriaEarthquake pic.twitter.com/vn65gzhNfg
— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) February 12, 2023
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Amid Cholera outbreak, health fears grow in quake-hit Syria
Across war-torn Syria, where the UN has estimated that 5.3 million people have been left homeless by the disaster, “there was a perfect storm brewing before the earthquake – of increasing food insecurity, collapsing healthcare systems, the lack of access to safe water and poor sanitation”, said Eva Hines, chief of communications for the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in the Syrian capital, Damascus. Read more here
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Turkey-Syria quakes: Pope Francis calls for prayers and solidarity with the victims
“We continue to be close, with prayer and concrete support, to the earthquake victims in Syria and Turkey,” he said during his Angelus address, the Vatican News reported. Read more here
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Rescue-team member Batuhan Tugen, who was trying to reach survivors in the wreckage in Hatay, Turkey, was buried under rubble after debris fell on his team. His teammates rescued Tugen, who suffered no major injuries#TurkeySyriaEarthquake #syriaearthquake pic.twitter.com/atNyGMhDRE
— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) February 11, 2023
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UAE sends 117 tonnes of humanitarian aid to Türkiye, Syria
“Within the past 24 hours, the United Arab Emirates has sent 117 tonnes of relief supplies as part of Operation ‘Gallant Knight/2’ for the victims of the earthquake that struck Türkiye and Syria,” state news agency WAM reported.
It said that the relief aid included 97 tonnes of foodstuff, 20 tonnes of medical supplies and 696 tents.
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Probes into faulty construction of buildings in Turkey under way
As despair has bred rage at the agonisingly slow rescue efforts after recent earthquakes, the focus has turned to assigning blame.
Turkish Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag said 131 people are under investigation for their alleged responsibility in the construction of buildings that failed to withstand the quakes.
While the quakes were powerful, victims, experts and people across Turkey are blaming faulty construction for multiplying the devastation.
Turkey’s construction codes meet current earthquake-engineering standards, at least on paper, but they are rarely enforced, explaining why thousands of buildings toppled over or pancaked down onto the people inside.
Among those facing scrutiny were two people arrested in Gaziantep province on suspicion of having cut down columns to make extra room in a building that collapsed, said the state-run news outlet Anadolu Agency.
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Quakes destroy more than 115 schools in Syria: UN
Recent earthquakes have destroyed more than 115 schools in Syria and damaged hundreds more, according to a United Nations update, Reuters reports.
More than 100 other schools were being used as makeshift shelters to host thousands displaced by the earthquake, which brought apartment blocks and even tiny rural homes crashing down on residents’ heads.
A general view shows the damage at kawkab al-Tofoula (Children’s Planet) nursery, in the aftermath of an earthquake, in the rebel-held town of Jandaris, Syria, on February 12, 2023 [Khalil Ashawi/Reuters]
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Teams save more quake survivors in miraculous rescues
Two sisters Rabia Kirmizi, 22, and Elif Kirmizi, 28, were rescued in the Adiyaman province after they were trapped under the concrete blocks for 152 hours.
Rescue teams also dug out Haci Ahmet, a seven-year-old boy, from the debris of an eight-story building in Adiyaman 152 hours after the earthquake hit.
In another rescue feeding hopes for more survivors, teams saved a mother and her son, Omer, after they were trapped in the debris for 150 hours.
Health Minister Fahrettin Koca also said on Twitter that a baby was rescued from the debris in the Hatay province 150 hours after the quakes hit the region. He shared the footage of the rescue work, saying: “There is always hope.”
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Aerial view of collapsed buildings as search and rescue efforts continue in Hatay after 7.7 and 7.6 magnitude earthquakes hit Türkiye’s Kahramanmaras province#TurkeyEarthquake pic.twitter.com/NrKIvkfwf4
— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) February 12, 2023
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Special Turkish cargo flight leaves Bangladesh with ‘friendly gifts’
Sevki Mert Baris, Bangledesh Coordinator of the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA), said that as they started receiving donations on Friday morning, Bangladeshi people turned out in large numbers to provide assistance as friendly gifts.
“It was not possible to send those items by only regular flights, so Turkish Airlines arranged this big-size special cargo flight,” he added.
He said nearly 100 tonnes of necessary items, including 1,900 tents, will reach the earthquake-hit Turkish people soon.
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Canadians rush to help Türkiye amid major earthquakes
Canadians continue their relief efforts to help Türkiye following two major earthquakes that jolted southern Türkiye earlier this week.
Türkiye’s Consul General in Toronto, Sinem Mingan, said that the support has long exceeded Turkish society and Canadians from all walks of life rush to Türkiye’s centres with the aid they have gathered. “We live in tearful moments,” she added.
“In addition to Muslim communities, we receive tremendous donations from our Canadian friends who have never set foot in Türkiye,” she said. “When we thank them, they say ‘this is our debt to Türkiye.’ You can see this even at the smallest individual or family level.”
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Qatari emir arrives in Türkiye to meet President Erdogan
Following two strong earthquakes that jolted southern Türkiye earlier this week, the Qatari emir arrived in Türkiye on a working visit, the Qatari media reported.
Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani left Doha to meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, according to Qatar News Agency.
Erdogan welcomed Al Thani at Istanbul’s Vahdettin Pavilion, according to presidential sources who shared a photo of the leaders on Twitter.
The Qatari amir, who is the first head of state to pay a visit to Türkiye after the deadly earthquakes, is accompanied by an official delegation.
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Türkiye: Ankara, Athens should not wait for another quake to mend fences
Addressing reporters with his Greek counterpart Nikos Dendias in the quake-hit Hatay province in southern Türkiye, Mevlut Cavusoglu hailed Greece’s support in the wake of devastating earthquakes earlier this week.
“The fact that Nikos Dendias is here with us today shows the solidarity of the Greek people with Türkiye and the Turkish nation,” Cavusoglu said. “Good neighbourly relations are seen during such challenging times.”
“Solidarity at difficult ties is important but we must not wait for another earthquake to develop relations,” he added.
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Horrifying image after the earthquake in Hatay! 30 meters deep, 200 meters wide…
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Turkey-Syria quake deaths could double, says UN official
United Nation relief chief Martin Griffiths said he expected the death toll to at least double after he arrived in southern Turkey on Saturday to assess the damage. Tens of thousands of rescue workers are scouring flattened neighbourhoods despite freezing weather that has deepened the hardship of millions now in desperate need of aid. Read more here
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Qatari Emir to travel to Türkiye in wake to earthquake disaster
Qatari Emir Tamim Al Thani is travelling to Türkiye to express solidarity with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the wake of the massive earthquake disaster, according to Anadolu news agency.
Earlier, the Emir personally donated $13.7 million to the country’s fundraising campaign for the relief of those affected by the earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria.
أول سفينة تحمل أول دفعة من أصل 10 آلاف منزل متنقل تستعد لمغادرة ميناء حمد لمساعدة متضرري زلزال #تركيا و #سوريا بإشراف صندوق قطر للتنمية pic.twitter.com/I7HFm6vZNh
— عبدالله الوذين (@abqatar) February 12, 2023
Translate: The first ship carrying the first batch of 10,000 mobile homes is preparing to leave Hamad Port to help those affected by the Turkey and Syria earthquakes, under the supervision of Qatar Fund for Development.
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Toddler rescued from the rubble in southern Türkiye
Another young child has been rescued about 150 hours after last week’s earthquake.
Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca made the announcement on Twitter on Sunday morning.
“There is always hope,” Koca wrote in a statement that accompanied the video of the rescue.
150. Saat müjdesi.
Az önce ekipler tarafından kurtarıldı. Umut hep var! pic.twitter.com/I8TORK1lWn
— Dr. Fahrettin Koca (@drfahrettinkoca) February 12, 2023
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EU envoy to Syria: ‘absolutely unfair’ to be accused of not providing aid
The European Union’s envoy to Syria said early on Sunday that it was not fair to accuse the group of failing to provide enough help to Syrians following the devastating earthquake that hit swathes of Türkiye and Syria last week.
“It is absolutely unfair to be accused of not providing aid, when actually we have constantly been doing exactly that for over a decade and we are doing so much more even during the earthquake crisis,” the head of the EU delegation Dan Stoenescu told Reuters in written comments.
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#PAKISTAN STANDS WITH #TURKEY & #SYRIA
Pakistan has so far sent 14x earthquake relief assistance flights (13x 🇹🇷 & 1x 🇸🇾) via air bridge. Moreover Pakistan’s NLC has established a land link route via Iran for cargo trucks, 16x trucks have been dispatched for Turkey & Syria. 1/n pic.twitter.com/hvvSPYJSjB
— Pakistan Strategic Forum (@ForumStrategic) February 12, 2023
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China sends 53 tonnes of tents to Turkey to aid earthquake relief: State broadcaster
China has shipped 53 tonnes of tents to aid earthquake-hit Turkey, with more emergency aid planned in the near future, state broadcaster CCTV said.
The tents departed Shanghai and are scheduled to arrive in Istanbul later on Sunday, CCTV said.Shipped on large cargo planes, according to video from CCTV, the tents would help aid in relief operations.
The first batch of supplies from China’s government, 40,000 blankets, arrived in Istanbul on Saturday, according to CCTV. The country is planning to send medical equipment, including electrocardiogram machines, ultrasound diagnostic instrument, and medical vehicles and hospital beds in the near future, CCTV said.
A rescue team of 82 members dispatched by the Chinese government arrived in Turkey on Wednesday, CCTV reported.
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About 1,100 bodies brought across Turkey-Syria crossing: Officials
About 1,100 bodies have so far been brought across the only border crossing between Turkey and opposition-held northwest Syria, officials who administer the Bab al-Hawa crossing said on Saturday.
They said they were working “around the clock” to deliver bodies from Turkey to Syria. Hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees fled to the southern Turkish region hardest hit by the earthquake amid Syria’s ongoing civil war.
Bodies are transported across the Bab al-Hawa crossing [File: Ali Haj Suleiman/Al Jazeera]
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EU envoy to Syria says accusation of not providing enough aid ‘unfair’
The European Union’s envoy to Syria says it is not fair to accuse the group of failing to provide enough help to Syrians following the devastating earthquake that hit swaths of Syria and Turkey.
“It is absolutely unfair to be accused of not providing aid, when actually we have constantly been doing exactly that for over a decade and we are doing so much more even during the earthquake crisis,” the head of the EU delegation, Dan Stoenescu, told Reuters news agency in written comments.
The Syrian government officially requested aid on Wednesday.
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Aftershocks continue to jolt Turkey, Syria
Al Jazeera’s Sinem Koseoglu says Turkey has experienced 2,356 tremors since Monday’s devastating earthquakes.
She says experts are calling for more quality control during the construction of buildings to reduce risks in the quake-prone region.
Watch her dispatch from the offices of Turkey’s AFAD agency in Ankara.
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All college volleyball players from Magusa perish in Adiyaman
All male and female members of a volleyball team from the Turkish College of Education in Magusa have died following the powerful quake that hit southern Türkiye last Monday.
According to several reports from Turkish media, the athletes were in the province of Adiyaman to participate in a tournament when the disaster struck.
Only four parents and a manager of the volleyball team survived, while 34 others died including all the athletes.
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Her baby sister sacrificed herself… Rescue team save a baby, Who was in the lap of her deseased sister
Her baby sister sacrificed herself…
Rescue team save a baby, Who was in the lap of her deseased sisterThe city of Jandiris in the countryside of Afrin, north of Aleppo, at dawn on Monday, Feb 6, after the violent #earthquakes that hit northwestern regions of Syria#Syria pic.twitter.com/cugzMVumiP
— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) February 12, 2023
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UN relief chief: Devastation in Türkiye ‘shocking’
UN relief chief Martin Griffiths has described as a “shocking experience” his visit to the earthquake-hit region of Türkiye.
In a video posted on Twitter, Griffiths said that finding more survivors from the rubble “is of the highest importance.”
Almost 26 million people have been affected by the earthquake, the World Health Organization (WHO) said as it launched a flash appeal for $42.8 million to cope with immediate, towering health needs.
What I saw today in #Türkiye was devastating.
What were once homes, filled with families and memories, now lay contorted and tangled.
Our thoughts are with those affected and we will continue to support in any way we can. pic.twitter.com/bhMDR1oEGN
— Martin Griffiths (@UNReliefChief) February 11, 2023
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Kuwaitis raise $67 million for quake victims in Türkiye, Syria
Kuwaitis have aised 20 million Kuwaiti dinars ($67 million) for victims of twin earthquakes that struck Türkiye and Syria.
More than 129,000 people participated in the donation drive organised by Kuwait’s Social Affairs Ministry to help victims of the quake.
In an interview with state television, Foreign Minister Sheikh Salem Abdullah Al Jaber Al Sabah thanked donors for the overwhelming response.
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Hundreds of Turkey quake victims buried in mass graves
Hundreds of Turkey quake victims buried in mass graves
Lines of graves were dug in the Turkish city of Hatay Saturday for the victims of a powerful earthquake that killed more than 25,000 across Turkey and Syria. #TurkeySyriaEarthquake pic.twitter.com/ZjyadvukAj
— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) February 11, 2023
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UN aid chief says earthquake region’s ‘worst’ in 100 years
UN aid chief Martin Griffiths has described the devastating earthquake that hit southern Turkey and northwestern Syria as the “worst event in 100 years in this region”.
Speaking during a news briefing in the Turkish province of Kahramanmaras, Griffiths also lauded Turkey’s response to the disaster as “extraordinary”.
He also told the Reuters news agency he hoped in Syria aid would go to both government and opposition-held areas, but that things with this regard were “not clear yet”.
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Arzu Apartment Building in Hatay, where rescuers saved eight people trapped beneath the rubble.#TurkeyEarthquake #Syria_earthquake pic.twitter.com/wF17iA1W4g
— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) February 11, 2023
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Fundraisers for Syria, Turkey earthquake try to deliver aid
Humanitarian groups working in southern Turkey and northwest Syria warn that Monday’s earthquake will have a “long tail” — a wide range of needs that will require donations for months, or even years, after the rescue and recovery missions end.
“We were able to do a massive distribution of food and blankets to more than 500 families,” from one of their warehouses in the immediate aftermath of the quake, said Avril Benoît, executive director for Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières USA. Her organisation keeps emergency supplies on hand in the case of major disasters.
“There’s a long tail to an emergency like this, both for the injured from the earthquake, but also for chronic disease management, making sure they have access to their medications,” Benoit said.
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said they had 5,200 volunteers mobilised on both sides of the Syria-Turkey border, with the Turkish operation being more robust and better equipped because of its longstanding programme to support Syrian refugees.
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‘Very difficult’ in Idlib province says Syrian doctor
A Syrian doctor at a maternity hospital in Idlib province says the situation since the earthquakes is “very difficult” amid slow aid and medical deliveries.
“No food, no camps, no drinks. As doctors … we don’t have medical devices in our hospitals for many surgeries, [including] neurosurgeries. And the hospital is full of people,” Ikram Habbaoush, a member of the Syrian American Medical Society, told Al Jazeera via Skype.
“The aid has come very slowly. If your baby needs emergency surgery … we cannot do it because the medical devices have not arrived.”
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2-year-old baby has been rescued miraculously 122 hours after two powerful earthquakes hit southern.#TurkeySyriaEarthquake #Syria_earthquake pic.twitter.com/OUpzFAaulk
— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) February 11, 2023
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German rescue, aid groups suspend operations in Hatay
Germany’s Federal Agency for Technical Relief (THW) and the aid organisation ISAR Germany are suspending their rescue work in Turkey’s Hatay province due to security concerns.
The organisations said on Saturday the safety situation had worsened on Saturday. While their teams remained at a joint base camp in the town of Kirikhan for now, if there was a concrete indication that someone could be rescued alive they would still go to the scene, THW spokeswoman Katharina Garrecht told the dpa news agency.
THW and ISAR attributed the tense situation to, among other things, “the shortage of food and the problematic water supply in the earthquake area”.
ISAR director of operations Steven Bayer said, “It can be seen that grief is slowly giving way to anger.”
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Erdogan vows concrete steps to rebuild within weeks
Turkish President Erdogan has pledged to take concrete steps to begin rebuilding cities in the hard-hit southeast region within weeks, saying hundreds of thousands of buildings were uninhabitable across southern Turkey.
Erdogan made the statement as he announced the latest death toll in the country, which had risen to 21,043.
Erdogan also condemned those who have looted or committed other crimes in earthquake areas, saying they would be punished by the state.
2-month-old baby rescued from quake rubble after 128 hours in debris
The baby survived the deadly disaster and was immediately taken to the hospital for medical checks.#TurkeySyriaEarthquake #Syria_earthquake pic.twitter.com/OMmVbKfBw6
— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) February 11, 2023
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WHO chief arrives in Syria: State media
World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has arrived in Syria’s quake-stricken city of Aleppo, state media reported.
Tedros “arrived at Aleppo airport to tour some hospitals and shelters with [Syria’s] health minister and the governor of Aleppo”, the official news agency SANA said.
Aleppo, in the northwest of the country, is controlled by the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Arrived in Aleppo, #Syria, with additional health supplies to help people across the country.
I’m heartbroken to see the conditions survivors are facing – freezing weather and extremely limited access to shelter, food, water, heat and medical care. pic.twitter.com/2xZ97Azs7i
— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) February 11, 2023
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Turkey arrests 48 people over looting after quake
Turkish authorities have arrested 48 people over looting after a powerful earthquake hit Turkey, state media reported.
The suspects were held in eight different provinces as part of investigations into looting after Monday’s 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit the region, killing more than 25,000 people in Turkey and Syria, news agency Anadolu said.
Survivors still being found in Kahramanmaras
Reporting from the epicentre of the quake in Kahramanmaras, Al Jazeera’s Resul Serdar says that, on the sixth day since the earthquakes hit the area, survivors were still being found.
“A five-year-old Syrian girl was taken out of the rubble, alive. An hour later, another girl was pulled out of the rubble, and she was also alive. These are the rare moments of joy here,” said Serdar.
“This city has seen so much that it needs some good news, and it also gives a spark of hope to the families,” he added.
Serdar said that during the past few hours, however, several bodies were taken out from under the rubble at the same location. “They are probably from the same family,” he said.
He added that while speaking to a woman earlier, she reported already burying more than 110 members of her family and friends.
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Turkey detains 12 over collapsed buildings after quake: report
Turkish police have detained 12 people over collapsed buildings in the southeastern provinces of Gaziantep and Sanliurfa, local media reported, following the huge quake that hit Turkey.
Those taken into custody included contractors, DHA news agency said. At least 6,000 buildings collapsed after a 7.8-magnitude tremor hit the region, killing more than 25,000 people, sparking anger about the poor quality of housing.
There are expected to be more detentions after the public prosecutor in Diyarbakir, one of 10 southeastern provinces affected by the quake, issued arrest warrants for 29 people on Saturday, state news agency reported.
One of those detained Saturday was a contractor for a building in Gaziantep, the agency said, adding he was found by police in Istanbul.
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‘It’s hard to imagine a more complex emergency’, says UN spokesman of Syria
More now from Stéphane Dujarric, spokesman for the UN Secretary General António Guterres, who says “it’s hard to imagine a more complex emergency” than in Syria right now.
“You are dealing with an almost once in a lifetime earthquake hitting a country that has been in conflict for 12 years where, already before this humanitarian emergency there was a longstanding humanitarian crisis with more than four million people needing aid,” he tells BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
“A lot of the infrastructure is either destroyed or damaged, that includes roads or bridges.
“Layered on top of that you have a very challenging security situation and you have areas where we have to negotiate access between the government and between rebels. All of that in the middle of winter.”
He adds that the UN has also lost two staff working in the region to the disaster.
“The humanitarian structure that was in place in southern Turkey and in north-west Syria was also hit by the earthquakes, our own staff have been hit,” he says.
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Aid trucks slowly arriving into Syria
Al Jazeera’s Stefanie Dekker reporting from the Turkey-Syria border says aid trucks were slowly “trickling” into Syria to help with relief efforts.
“We’ve been focusing on rescue and recovery here in Turkey. The fact that international teams arrived left, right and center to help none of that has arrived in Syria,” she said from Cilvegozu.
“We came here to cover potential aid trucks and what we’ve been seeing is the bodies of Syrians killed in this earthquake [in Turkey] in body bags being handed out of trucks … and then driving into Syria to be buried at home around.”
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Nearly 100 countries offering assistance to Turkey: Ministry
Foreign search, rescue and aid teams in the earthquake regions pic.twitter.com/XWpLIeeFjc
— Turkish MFA (@MFATurkiye) February 11, 2023
Ninety-nine countries have offered assistance to the country to help with quake relief efforts, the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs has said.
On the ground, search and rescue teams from 68 nations were present with 8,326 foreign personnel, the ministry tweeted.
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Earthquake footage shows Turkey’s buildings collapsing like pancakes. An expert explains why?
A pair of huge earthquakes have struck in Turkey, leaving more than 3,000 people dead and unknown numbers injured or displaced. The first quake, near Gaziantep close to the Syrian border, measured 7.8 in magnitude and was felt as far away as the UK. The second occurred nine hours later, on what appears to be an intersecting fault, registering a magnitude of 7.5. Read more here
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Urgently needed food
At least 870,000 people urgently needed food in Turkey and Syria after the earthquake, which has left up to 5.3 million people homeless in Syria alone, the UN warned.
Aftershocks following Monday’s 7.8-magnitude tremor have added to the death toll and further upended the lives of survivors, Agence France-Presse reports.
Fidan Turan, a pensioner in Turkey’s southern city of Antakya, said:
When I see the destroyed buildings, the bodies, it’s not that I can’t see where I will be in two or three years – I can’t imagine where I’ll be tomorrow.”
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Five million may be homeless in Syria after quake: UN
More than five million Syrians may be homeless after Monday’s devastating earthquakes that struck the country and its neighbour Turkey, according to a United Nations official. Read more here
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