Over 24,000 dead from earthquake in Turkey and Syria
1 hr 5 min agoDeath toll crosses 24,000From CNN's Isil Sariyuce and Jonny HallamThe number of people killed following Monday's devastating earthquakes in Turkey and Syria has reached at least 24,178, according to authorities.In Turkey, the death toll has risen to at least 20,665, according to the country's disaster and emergency management presidency SAKOM.In Syria, the total number or dead stands at 3,513, including 2,166 in rebel-held areas in the northwest of the country, according to the ‘White Helmets’ civil defense – and 1,347 deaths in government-controlled parts of Syria, according to Syrian state media.1 hr 53 min agoDeath toll climbs to 23,831From CNN's Jonny HallamPeople earthquake victims in Adiyaman, Turkey, on Friday, February 10. (Emrah Gurel/AP)The number of people killed following Monday's devastating earthquakes in Turkey and Syria has reached at least 23,831, according to authorities.In Turkey, the death toll rose to 20,318 with 80,052 reported injured the country's disaster agency said Friday.In Syria, the total number or dead stands at 3,513, including 2,166 in rebel-held areas in the northwest of the country, according to the ‘White Helmets’ civil defense – and 1,347 deaths in government-controlled parts of Syria, according to Syrian state media.2 hr 47 min agoThe search for survivors is over in rebel-held areas of Syria, White Helmets sayFrom CNN's Mohammed TawfeeqThe volunteer organization Syria Civil Defense, also known as the White Helmets, announced the end of its search and rescue operations for survivors in rebel-controlled areas in the north and northwest following the earthquakes that hit the country and Turkey on Monday.The group said it believes no one trapped under the rubble is still alive after 108 hours of searching.However, it is now searching for the bodies of those under collapsed buildings."Since the beginning of the earthquake on Monday at 4.17am local time until the announcement of the end of the search and rescue operations, 2,166 deaths were registered and more than 2,950 injured in all the areas hit by the earthquake in north and northwestern Syria," the White Helmets said in a statement released Friday."Our teams have conducted 108 hours of work in more than 40 cities, towns and villages in northwestern Syria, in which about 479 residential buildings were completely destroyed, and more than 1,481 buildings were partially destroyed," the statement added.According to the statement, many women and children were among the dead people in the most affected areas, including in the towns of Jindires and Haram in north Syria.2 hr 4 min agoTeenage boy survivor pulled from rubble 119 hours after Turkey's earthquakeFrom CNN's Talia Kayali and Jonny Hallam (CNN Turk)A 16-year-old boy was pulled alive from the rubble of a destroyed building in the Turkish city of Kahramanmaras 119 hours after the devastating earthquake hit the country and Syria.In dramatic scenes shown live on CNN affiliate, CNN Turk, Kamil Can was brought to the surface with a smile on his face. He appeared to be in OK condition. Rescuers said they had been prompted to search the location after hearing his voice come from below the wreckage.Kamil was taken away on a stretcher, looking alert, to waiting relatives who could be seen kissing him with joy.2 hr 47 min agoThis is Turkey's deadliest earthquake in more than 80 yearsFrom CNN's Jhasua Razo and Krystina ShvedaWhile Turkey is no stranger to strong earthquakes, Monday's disaster is the deadliest to strike the country in more than 80 years. Here's what we know:2 hr 47 min ago"A crisis within a crisis": Millions of Syrians could be left homeless following earthquake, UN saysFrom CNN's Mohammed TawfeeqMore than 5 million people in Syria may have been left homeless following the earthquake that struck the country and Turkey on Monday, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said Friday."UNHCR is focusing very much on shelter and relief items, ensuring that collective centers that displaced have gone to have adequate facilities, as well as tents, plastic sheeting, thermal blankets, sleeping mats, winter clothing and so on," said Sivanka Dhanapala, a UNHCR representative in Syria."For Syria, this is a crisis within a crisis," Dhanapala said. "We've had economic shocks, Covid, and are now in the depths of winter, with blizzards raging in the affected areas." The United Nations agency said 6.8 million people were already displaced internally within the country since the start of the civil war that ripped through Syria in 2011."All this, of course, impacts the access for aid," Dhanapala said. "Roads have been damaged and that hampers us trying to reach people. It's been very, very difficult." Based on "a preliminary estimate," the refugee organization said "5.37 million people affected by the quake will need shelter assistance in the whole of Syria." "That is a huge number and comes to a population already suffering mass displacement," according to Dha
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Death toll crosses 24,000
From CNN's Isil Sariyuce and Jonny Hallam
The number of people killed following Monday's devastating earthquakes in Turkey and Syria has reached at least 24,178, according to authorities.
In Turkey, the death toll has risen to at least 20,665, according to the country's disaster and emergency management presidency SAKOM.
In Syria, the total number or dead stands at 3,513, including 2,166 in rebel-held areas in the northwest of the country, according to the ‘White Helmets’ civil defense – and 1,347 deaths in government-controlled parts of Syria, according to Syrian state media.
Death toll climbs to 23,831
From CNN's Jonny Hallam
The number of people killed following Monday's devastating earthquakes in Turkey and Syria has reached at least 23,831, according to authorities.
In Turkey, the death toll rose to 20,318 with 80,052 reported injured the country's disaster agency said Friday.
In Syria, the total number or dead stands at 3,513, including 2,166 in rebel-held areas in the northwest of the country, according to the ‘White Helmets’ civil defense – and 1,347 deaths in government-controlled parts of Syria, according to Syrian state media.
The search for survivors is over in rebel-held areas of Syria, White Helmets say
From CNN's Mohammed Tawfeeq
The volunteer organization Syria Civil Defense, also known as the White Helmets, announced the end of its search and rescue operations for survivors in rebel-controlled areas in the north and northwest following the earthquakes that hit the country and Turkey on Monday.
The group said it believes no one trapped under the rubble is still alive after 108 hours of searching.
However, it is now searching for the bodies of those under collapsed buildings.
"Since the beginning of the earthquake on Monday at 4.17am local time until the announcement of the end of the search and rescue operations, 2,166 deaths were registered and more than 2,950 injured in all the areas hit by the earthquake in north and northwestern Syria," the White Helmets said in a statement released Friday.
"Our teams have conducted 108 hours of work in more than 40 cities, towns and villages in northwestern Syria, in which about 479 residential buildings were completely destroyed, and more than 1,481 buildings were partially destroyed," the statement added.
According to the statement, many women and children were among the dead people in the most affected areas, including in the towns of Jindires and Haram in north Syria.
Teenage boy survivor pulled from rubble 119 hours after Turkey's earthquake
From CNN's Talia Kayali and Jonny Hallam
A 16-year-old boy was pulled alive from the rubble of a destroyed building in the Turkish city of Kahramanmaras 119 hours after the devastating earthquake hit the country and Syria.
In dramatic scenes shown live on CNN affiliate, CNN Turk, Kamil Can was brought to the surface with a smile on his face. He appeared to be in OK condition.
Rescuers said they had been prompted to search the location after hearing his voice come from below the wreckage.
Kamil was taken away on a stretcher, looking alert, to waiting relatives who could be seen kissing him with joy.
This is Turkey's deadliest earthquake in more than 80 years
From CNN's Jhasua Razo and Krystina Shveda
While Turkey is no stranger to strong earthquakes, Monday's disaster is the deadliest to strike the country in more than 80 years.
Here's what we know:
"A crisis within a crisis": Millions of Syrians could be left homeless following earthquake, UN says
From CNN's Mohammed Tawfeeq
More than 5 million people in Syria may have been left homeless following the earthquake that struck the country and Turkey on Monday, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said Friday.
"UNHCR is focusing very much on shelter and relief items, ensuring that collective centers that displaced have gone to have adequate facilities, as well as tents, plastic sheeting, thermal blankets, sleeping mats, winter clothing and so on," said Sivanka Dhanapala, a UNHCR representative in Syria.
"For Syria, this is a crisis within a crisis," Dhanapala said. "We've had economic shocks, Covid, and are now in the depths of winter, with blizzards raging in the affected areas."
The United Nations agency said 6.8 million people were already displaced internally within the country since the start of the civil war that ripped through Syria in 2011.
"All this, of course, impacts the access for aid," Dhanapala said. "Roads have been damaged and that hampers us trying to reach people. It's been very, very difficult."
Based on "a preliminary estimate," the refugee organization said "5.37 million people affected by the quake will need shelter assistance in the whole of Syria."
"That is a huge number and comes to a population already suffering mass displacement," according to Dhanapala.
White House says it's ramping up earthquake relief assistance to Turkey and Syria
From CNN's DJ Judd
The United States is “ramping up” assistance to Turkey and Syria following the catastrophic earthquake that struck on Monday, the White House told reporters Friday.
John Kirby, the White House National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications, said the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has already deployed a disaster assistance and response team to Turkey.
Two additional urban search and rescue teams are also “conducting operations in support of Turkish rescue efforts” in the hardest-hit areas of Turkey, for a sum-total of 200 personnel, assisted with specialized equipment and canine support dogs, according to Kirby. He said the US is deploying assistance teams via Blackhawk helicopters from Incirlik Air Force Base in southern Turkey.
On Thursday, USAID announced $85 million in funding for the region to provide “emergency food and shelter for refugees and newly displaced people, winter supplies to help families brave the cold, critical health care services to provide trauma support, safe drinking water to prevent disease, and hygiene and sanitation assistance to keep people safe and healthy.”
In Syria, Kirby said, humanitarian partners are “urgently scaling up response efforts,” including the launch of charter flights carrying medical supplies, the distribution of hot meals and the deployment of 20 truckloads of medicine and food into the country, as a way to "underscore that US sanctions will not prevent or inhibit prohibiting humanitarian assistance in Syria.”
He pointed to a license from the US Treasury that provides additional authorizations for humanitarian assistance to the Syrian people.
Death toll from quakes in Turkey and Syria surpasses 23,000
From CNN's Eyad Kourdi, Isil Sariyuce and Hande Atay Alam
The death toll following the earthquakes that hit Turkey and Syria this week has climbed to 23,726, according to authorities.
In Turkey, the death toll has risen to at least 20,213 with 80,052 others reported injured, according to Turkey’s Health Minister Fahrettin Koca.
The total number of deaths in Syria stands at 3,384 — including 2,166 in rebel-held areas in the northwest, according to the White Helmets civil defense group — and 1,347 deaths in government-controlled parts of Syria, according to Syrian state media.
The number of injured people in Syria across all affected territories stands at 5,245,
Syrian President al-Assad criticizes Western countries in first televised comments since Monday's earthquake
From CNN’s Mostafa Salem and Eyad Kourdi
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad criticized Western countries in his first televised comments since the 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck parts of the country five days ago, Syrian state media showed.
Assad and his wife, Asma, visited different sites affected by the earthquake and visited survivors at a hospital in Aleppo, pictures on state-run news agency SANA showed.
Standing near a building destroyed by the earthquake, Assad told reporters that Western countries “have no regard for the human condition.” This comment is in line with statements heard from government officials and Syria’s state-run media, who have pinned the lack of humanitarian aid and hindered rescue equipment on US and EU sanctions.
The US says its sanctions are not imposed on humanitarian efforts, and on Friday, the US Treasury issued a “General License” for 180 days, which authorizes all earthquake relief-related transactions otherwise prohibited by sanctions regulations. The Syrian Foreign Ministry called this a measure a means to give a “false impressions of humanity,” SANA said.
Remember: Almost 11 million people have been affected by the disaster in Syria, the UN said. The death toll in Syria stands at least 3,384, including 2,037 in rebel-held areas in the northwest, according to the "White Helmets" civil defense group – and 1,347 deaths in government-controlled parts of Syria, according to Syrian state media. More than 5,000 people have been injured across all affected territories, according to authorities.
The delivery of urgent supplies to quake-hit areas of northern Syria has been complicated by a long-running civil war between opposition forces and Assad's government, who is accused of killing his own people. Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad says any aid it receives must go through the capital Damascus.
That leaves rebel-held areas reliant on aid groups including the UN, who has only been able to send two convoys since Monday, which is starkly different to Turkey, where 70 countries and 14 international organizations have promptly offered teams of rescuers, donations and aid as of Thursday.
