Turkey has concluded rescue efforts in all provinces except for Kahramanmaras and Hatay, two weeks after a devastating 7.8-magnitude earthquake killed tens of thousands of people in the region. The country’s disaster agency chief, Yunus Sezer, said that search and rescue efforts were still underway at around 40 buildings in the two provinces, but he expected this number to decrease by Sunday evening.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has arrived in Turkey to show support and announced $100 million in humanitarian aid. He said that the aid will be used for long-term recovery efforts, as getting aid into Syria is “very, very challenging”. Blinken will travel to Hatay to observe humanitarian efforts before meeting with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday.
The death toll from the earthquake is expected to increase, with about 345,000 apartments in Turkey known to have been destroyed and many people still missing. Rescue workers were able to pull at least three people from the rubble on Friday, more than 11 days after they were trapped when the quake hit.
The visit of Blinken to Turkey was planned before the earthquake, and he and Erdogan are expected to discuss issues including Turkey’s refusal to ratify Sweden and Finland’s NATO membership applications. The US Secretary of State’s visit is his first to Turkey since he took office more than two years ago.
The massive earthquake has had a devastating impact on the region, with tens of thousands of people killed in both Turkey and Syria. The country’s disaster agency has ended rescue efforts in all provinces except for Kahramanmaras and Hatay, but hopes of finding anyone else alive in the rubble are fading fast. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has arrived in Turkey to show support and announced $100 million in humanitarian aid for long-term recovery efforts. He will travel to Hatay to observe humanitarian efforts before meeting with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday. The pair are expected to discuss issues including Turkey’s refusal to ratify Sweden and Finland’s NATO membership applications.