LIVE – A 7.8 earthquake hits southern Turkey: more than 600 dead in the country and in Syria

Israel announced on Monday that it had offered aid to Ankara following the deadly earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria.

“At the request of the Turkish government, I have ordered all authorities to immediately prepare to provide medical assistance and relief,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement.

“We will decide on the departure of a delegation as soon as possible,” he added.

Israel and Turkey, a Muslim country, completed the full resumption of their diplomatic relations in January, after several years of crisis.

Several European countries have offered their aid to Syria and Turkey, hit by a devastating earthquake overnight from Sunday to Monday.

This is notably the case of Germany, Italy, France, Belgium, Poland, Spain and even Finland.

The earthquake killed at least 386 people and injured 988 in northern Syria on Monday, according to provisional reports released by state media and rescue workers in the rebel zone.

According to Syrian television, 239 people were killed in the collapse of homes and 648 injured in several cities including Aleppo (north), Syria’s second city. Victims have also been identified in Hama (center) as well as Latakia and Tartous, on the Mediterranean coast.

In the regions held by the rebels, close to Turkey, the White Helmets counted 147 dead and 340 wounded.

France is “ready to provide emergency aid to the populations” in Turkey and Syria after the violent earthquake which killed hundreds of people in the two countries, declared Emmanuel Macron.

Germany will send aid to regions affected by the violent earthquake that struck southern Turkey and neighboring Syria on Monday, killing hundreds, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said.

“We follow the news of the earthquake in the border region between Turkey and Syria with shock. The death toll continues to rise. We mourn with the families and tremble for those buried. Germany will of course send help,” the chancellor wrote in a post on Twitter.

The death toll in Syria from the earthquake, whose epicenter is in Turkey, has risen to 147 dead in rebel areas according to rescuers, who also report more than 340 injured.

“One hundred and forty-seven civilians are dead and more than 340 injured according to a provisional report, in the province of Idleb and the surroundings of Aleppo”, in the north of the country, announced the White Helmets on Twitter, adding to expect to a “significant increase” in the number of victims, “hundreds of families still under the rubble”.

The European Union has sent teams of rescuers to Turkey, hit by a violent earthquake which is also affecting Syria, European Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarcic announced on Monday.

“Following the earthquake in Turkey this morning, we have activated the EU Civil Protection Mechanism…Teams from the Netherlands and Romania are already on their way,” the official tweeted. European.

This aid responds to a request from Turkey, said a spokesperson for the European Commission.

In addition to the 237 dead counted in Syrian areas controlled by the regime, rescuers have identified more than 120 dead in rebel areas after the earthquake.

The death toll from the massive earthquake that hit southeastern Turkey on Monday has risen to 284 dead and at least 2,323 injured, according to data released by Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay.

70 dead were counted, 200 injured and 300 buildings collapsed in Maras, in the center-east of the country in the heart of Anatolia.

In Gaziantep, near the Syrian border, the toll stands at 80 dead, 600 injured and nearly 600 buildings collapsed.

In Osmaniye, 20 people died, 200 injured and more than 80 buildings collapsed. There are 4 dead in Hatay, seven injured and 200 collapsed buildings.

In Adiyaman 13 people died, 22 injured and a hundred buildings collapsed. In Diyarbakir 14 dead were counted, 225 injured and about twenty buildings collapsed.

In Sanlurfa, 18 people died, 200 injured and 60 buildings collapsed. In Malatya 47 dead, 550 injured, 300 buildings collapsed.

Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay said at least three airports, Hatay, Maras and Gaziantep are closed to traffic on Monday morning after an earthquake hit the area where they are located. He did not specify the reasons, but these three cities are among the most affected.

In addition, the snow and bad weather hitting the region also prevented traffic at several other airports including Diyarbakir, AFP noted.

Italy on Monday offered Turkey the help of its Civil Protection after the violent earthquake that hit the south-east of the country overnight.

His head of diplomacy Antonio Tajani said on Twitter that he had spoken on the phone with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu to “tell him of Italy’s support and make available [ses personnels de] civil defence”

For her part, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni “informed by the Department of Civil Protection, is constantly monitoring the situation after the destructive earthquake which struck Turkey, on the borders with Syria”, indicates a press release from her services.

The French Foreign Minister sent her “sincere condolences” to Turkey and “to the Turkish people” after the “terrible earthquake” which struck the country.

The death toll from the massive earthquake that hit southeastern Turkey on Monday has risen to 284 dead and at least 2,320 injured, according to data released by Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay.

According to him, more than a thousand buildings have completely collapsed, which raises fears of even heavier tolls.

Dozens of people were killed in the rebel areas of northern Syria during the earthquake whose epicenter is in Turkey and hundreds of others are injured or still under the rubble, rescue workers announced on Monday.

In a press release, the White Helmets, the rescue workers engaged in the rebel areas, declared these regions “disaster” and called on international humanitarian organizations to “intervene quickly” to help the local population.

The death toll in Syria from the earthquake, whose epicenter is in Turkey, has risen to 237 dead and 639 injured, the Syrian Ministry of Health announced on Monday.

A previous toll reported 111 dead in areas under Syrian regime control, while the number of victims in rebel-held areas is not yet known. The 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit southern Turkey and neighboring Syria at dawn on Monday.

For the only areas under the control of the Syrian regime, the toll of the earthquake amounts to 111 dead and 516 injured, according to the Ministry of Health. The victims were recorded in Aleppo, the second Syrian city in the north of the country, as well as in Hama (center) and Latakia and Tartous, on the Mediterranean coast.

In the areas controlled by the rebels, close to the border with Turkey, no overall assessment was available at first. At least eight people died in the collapse of numerous buildings in the localities of Azaz and Al-Bab, close to the Turkish border, a hospital source told AFP.

The death toll in Syria from the earthquake, whose epicenter is in Turkey, has risen to 111 dead and 516 injured, the Syrian Ministry of Health announced on Monday.

A previous toll reported 42 dead in areas under Syrian regime control. The 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit southern Turkey and neighboring Syria at dawn on Monday.

After the earthquake that hit Turkey overnight, the governor of Gaziantep province called on residents to gather outside despite the cold, while the head of Diyanet, the Turkish public body responsible for supervising worship, to call on Turks in need to seek refuge in mosques.

Turkish rescuers and civil defense as well as Syrian firefighters are still at work Monday morning to try to extract possible victims from the rubble, according to local media.

50 aftershocks of the earthquake that struck Turkey have been recorded in the country, according to the government Agency for disaster management (Afad).

Turkey is located on one of the most active seismic zones in the world. At the end of November, a magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck northwestern Turkey, injuring around 50 people and causing limited damage, according to the Turkish emergency services.

In January 2020, a 6.7 magnitude earthquake struck the provinces of Elazig and Malatya (East), killing more than 40 people. And in October of the same year, a magnitude 7 earthquake in the Aegean Sea left 114 dead and more than 1,000 injured.

At least 50 people were killed in the collapse of buildings following the violent earthquake which struck Syria at dawn on Monday and whose epicenter is in Turkey, according to state media and hospitals.

According to an official from the Ministry of Health, quoted by the official Sana agency, 42 dead and more than 200 injured have been recorded in Aleppo, the second Syrian city in the north of the country, in Hama (center) and in Latakia, on the Mediterranean coast. The toll could rise further, added the official.

This earthquake is the largest in Turkey since the earthquake of August 17, 1999, which caused the death of 17,000 people, including a thousand in Istanbul.

“All our teams are on alert. We have issued a level four alarm. This is a call, including for international help,” Turkish Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu told the Haberturk channel.

The earthquake last night in Turkey caused scenes of panic in northern Syria where the inhabitants rushed outside, despite the torrential rains, as well as in neighboring Lebanon where the tremors were strongly felt.

At least 23 people were killed and 420 others injured in the province of Malatya, detailed its governor to the public channel TRT.

At least 42 people died in several cities in Syria following the violent earthquake on Monday, the epicenter of which is in Turkey, said the official Syrian agency Sana.

According to the agency, which quotes an official from the Ministry of Health, 42 dead and more than 200 injured have been recorded in the cities of Aleppo, Hama and Latakia and the toll could increase.

At least 53 people have died in different provinces of southern and southeastern Turkey after a 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit that region as well as neighboring Syria, the governors of these provinces said on Monday.

Welcome to this live broadcast dedicated to monitoring the consequences of this earthquake, which struck south-eastern Turkey last night.