New Delhi: Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday (February 7, 2023) declared a state of emergency in 10 provinces devastated by two earthquakes that have killed more than 3,700 people in Turkey so far. Erdogan declared the 10 Turkish provinces affected as a disaster zone and imposed a state of emergency there for three months. This would allow the government to bypass parliament to enact new laws and limit or suspend rights and freedoms.
Erdogan, who faces national elections in three months’ time, said the government would open hotels in the tourist hub of Antalya to temporarily accommodate people affected by the powerful quake.
Erdogan said the death toll in Turkey had risen to 3,549.
135 million people affected by 7.8 magnitude earthquake in Turkey
According to Turkish officials, Monday’s 7.8-magnitude earthquake affected some 13.5 million people in an area stretching some 450 km from Adana in the west to Diyarbakir in the east and 300 km from Malatya in the north to Hatay in the south. , which was nearly as potent with each other hours later.
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Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) said 5,775 buildings were destroyed and 20,426 people were injured in the earthquake.
Officials have said that more than 12,000 search and rescue personnel along with 9,000 soldiers are working in the affected areas.
Nearly 70 countries are sending personnel, equipment and aid For disaster affected country.
Over 1,700 dead in Syria earthquake
The earthquake also caused havoc in neighboring Syria, where the death toll was at least 1,712. According to Syrian officials, deaths have been reported as far south as Hama, about 250 km from the epicenter.
Thousands have also been injured in cities in northern Syria.
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Aid officials have expressed particular concern about the situation in Syria, a country already suffering a humanitarian crisis after nearly 12 years of civil war.