Rescuers plucked a child and at least two women from the rubble in Gaziantep and Hatay a week into the search effort raising some hope of more survivors as the death toll surpasses 36,000.
The death toll in Türkiye and Syria has climbed to more than 36,000, a week after two powerful earthquakes, centred in southeastern Türkiye, struck both countries, triggering a massive search and rescue effort amid grief and destruction.
As the disaster hits a one-week mark on Monday, hope remains that more survivors could still be found, after rescuers plucked two siblings aged 8 and 15 from the rubble in Hatay 183 hours into the search effort.
In Türkiye, the death toll has reached 31,643, while the number of deaths in Syria reached 4,581, according to the latest figures.
Here is how you can help the earthquake victims.
Following are the latest updates:
Search teams are facing a race against the clock as experts caution that hopes for finding people alive in the debris dim with each passing day. (AA)
Monday, February 13, 2023
1432 GMT — 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.
1418 GMT — Teenager rescued from rubble in Türkiye 182 hours after quake
Rescuers pulled an alive 13-year-old out from under the rubble of a collapsed building in Hatay province, more than a week after a devastating earthquake struck.
The teenager held a rescuer's hand as he was placed on a stretcher, head braced, and covered for warmth before he was moved into an ambulance.
1355 GMT — Türkiye offers to open two border gates with Syria
Türkiye has offered to open two border crossings with Syria for the international community to send humanitarian aid to the quake-hit northern regions, the Turkish foreign minister said.
"We told the international community and the UN that they could send humanitarian aid through the two gates under our control. We said that we can open these gates to humanitarian aid," Mevlut Cavusoglu said during a joint news conference with his Libyan counterpart Najla Al Mangoush in the capital Ankara.
The top diplomat was referring to the two border gates in the southern Kilis province.
He, however, added: “It is out of question for Türkiye to open border crossings in places (in Syria) controlled by the PKK and YPG.”
1330 GMT — 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.
1250 GMT — 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.
People in Kahramanmaras keep warm by a fire as the search for survivors continues in the aftermath of last week's deadly earthquake. (Reuters)
1139 GMT — Seventy-year-old Turkish woman rescued in Hatay, Türkiye
Rescue workers embraced one another after rescuing 70-year-old Nuray Gurbuz from the rubble of a collapsed 3-storey- building 178 hours after two 7.7 and 7.6 magnitude earthquakes hit multiple provinces of Türkiye, including Hatay.
1124 GMT — Young woman recovered from rubble in Hatay, Türkiye
Twenty-six-year-old Derya Akdogan has been rescued from under the rubble of a collapsed building 177 hours after the two earthquakes hit Türkiye and Syria.
1049 GMT — Young girl rescued from rubble in Türkiye
A young girl named Miray was rescued from the rubble of an apartment block in the southeastern Turkish city of Adiyaman 178 hours after two devastating earthquakes shook the region, a minister and media reports said.
Turkish local media said the girl was six years old and that rescuers were also close to reaching her older sister.
Turkish Transport Minister Adil Karaismailoglu had earlier said she was four years old.
0939 GMT — Miracle rescue after 176 hours under rubble
Rescue workers in Hatay have saved Serap Donmez from under rubble of a collapsed building 176 hours following the 7.7 and 7.6 magnitude earthquakes that hit multiple provinces of Türkiye and Syria.
0935 GMT — Woman rescued in Hatay, Türkiye
Emergency service workers rescued a Turkish woman, Naide Umay, in Hatay after 175 hours under the rubble.
0931 GMT — Another batch of relief goods from India on way to Türkiye
As people in India continue to come forward to donate for the earthquake victims in Türkiye and Syria, another batch of relief goods was sent to Türkiye, the Turkish ambassador to India has said.
Ambassador Firat Sunel also said Turkish Airlines "carries the aid on a daily basis to the earthquake-hit region, free of charge."
Thanking India’s people for the donations, Sunel said: “Each tent, each blanket or sleeping bag is of vital importance for the hundreds of thousands of earthquake survivors."
The Indian government is sending relief materials, medicines, equipment, and rescuers to earthquake-hit Türkiye and Syria under Operation Dost (Friendship Operation).
The government has sent a total of seven flights to the two quake-hit nations so far.
0918 GMT — Death toll rises above 31,000 in Türkiye
The death toll from catastrophic earthquakes that hit southeastern Türkiye has risen to 31,643, according to the country's emergency agency AFAD.
0715 GMT — Death toll in Syria rises to 4,581
One week after the powerful earthquakes that hit Türkiye and Syria, sources from regime-controlled and opposition-controlled areas in Syria have reported that the death toll has now risen to 4,581
The White Helments said that 3,167 people were killed in the opposition-controlled areas.
Meanwhile, regime media said 1,414 people were killed in the quake in the regime-controlled areas.
0705 GMT — First batch of Indonesian humanitarian mission reaches Türkiye
Two Indonesian Air Force aircraft brought the first batch of the country's humanitarian mission to Türkiye to join the post-earthquake operations in the affected regions.
The aircraft carrying rescue personnel "Inasar", and heavy and light equipment along with humanitarian aid from Indonesia's Ministry of Defense landed at Adana Airport separately.
“After unloading passengers and cargo, the first plane immediately flew back to Indonesia. While the second plane, after being unloaded, flew to Ankara to rest and change the crew," Colonel Amir Ali Akbar, the Defense Attache at Indonesian Embassy in Ankara, said in a statement on Monday.
0605 GMT — 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.
0552 GMT — 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 southeastern region of Türkiye since the disaster a week ago.
0450 GMT — Woman rescued in Gaziantep 170 hours after the earthquake
Rescuers in Gaziantep have saved a woman who was trapped under the rubble for 170 hours.
News reports identified the woman by the name of Sibel Kaya.
Images posted on social media on Monday showed the survivor wearing an oxygen mask and wrapped in thermal blanket as medics carried her on a stretcher.
Soon after we marked 7 days since the exact moment the first major #earthquake struck southern #Turkiye last Monday, rescuers pulled a 40-year-old woman alive from the rubble in #Gaziantep. Incredible. There’s still hope 🙏 #depremzede #Turkey #earthquakes pic.twitter.com/fFSxLfsJXD
— Auskar Surbakti (@AuskarSurbakti) February 13, 2023
Source: TRTWorld and agencies
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(With input from news agency language)
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