Category: Turkey

Erdogan Indicates Turkey Elections to Be in May, 3 Months After Quake

ANKARA/PAZARCIK, Turkey—President Tayyip Erdogan indicated on Wednesday that elections will be held on May 14, sticking to his previous plan for the vote with a date just over three months after a devastating earthquake killed more than 45,000 people in Turkey. “This nation will do what is necessary on May 14, God willing,” Erdogan said…


Earthquake Death Toll in Turkey Rises Above 45,000: AFAD

ISTANBUL—The death toll in Turkey from last month’s devastating earthquake has risen to 45,089, the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) said on Wednesday, bringing the total toll including Syria to about 51,000. The earthquake and subsequent powerful tremors injured more than 108,000 in Turkey and left millions sheltering in tents or seeking to move…


Turkey’s Implosion and Isolation From the West

Commentary Turkey’s strategic collapse had, by early 2023, become unavoidable; it had already begun. And rather than attempt any remedial action, the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan merely worsened the crisis, hoping to achieve short-term popularity. However, his apparent paranoia over possible threats to his survival in office meant that he delayed by 48…


After Years of Isolation, Quake-Hit Syria Set to Return to Regional Fold

After being largely shunned in the region for the past 12 years, Syria appears set to return to the fold after two devastating earthquakes left thousands dead in the country’s northwest early this month. On Feb. 27, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry visited Damascus, where he held talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. It was…


New Turkey Quake Kills 1 Person, Flattens More Buildings

OSMANIYE, Turkey—An earthquake shook southeast Turkey on Monday, killing one person, injuring 110, and causing 29 buildings to collapse, Turkish authorities said, triggering frantic work to rescue several people believed trapped in rubble. The latest aftershock, with a magnitude of 5.6 and depth of 6.15 km, hit three weeks after a massive quake that killed…


Turkey Quake Survivors Struggle to Find Shelter Nearly Three Weeks On

ANTAKYA, Turkey—Omran Alswed and his family are still living in makeshift shelters almost three weeks after the massive earthquake in southern Turkey, having been unable to find a place in an official camp. Nearly two million people left homeless by the quake are being housed in tents, container homes, and other facilities in and beyond…


Turkey Begins to Rebuild for 1.5 Million Left Homeless by Earthquakes

ANTAKYA/ANKARA, Turkey—Turkey has begun initial work to rebuild homes following this month’s devastating earthquakes, a government official said on Friday, as a U.N. Development Program (UNDP) estimated 1.5 million people have been left homeless. More than 160,000 buildings containing 520,000 apartments collapsed or were severely damaged in the Feb. 6 earthquakes that killed more than…


Death Toll From Turkey, Syria Earthquake Tops 47,000

ANKARA, Turkey—The death toll from the massive earthquake that hit parts of Turkey and Syria on Feb. 6 continues to rise as more bodies are retrieved from the rubble of demolished buildings. A magnitude 6.4 earthquake that struck the already battered Province of Hatay this week damaged or demolished more buildings, compounding the devastation. Here’s…


Hatayspor Sporting Director Found Dead Following Earthquake

The body of Hatayspor’s Sporting Director Taner Savut was recovered on Tuesday more than two weeks after two devastating earthquakes struck in Turkey and Syria, in which more than 47,000 people have died. Savut had been missing since Feb. 6. His body was found close to where Ghanaian footballer Christian Atsu, of the same club,…


Death Toll Rises to 8 From New Turkey-Syria Earthquake

ISTANBUL—The death toll in Turkey and Syria rose to eight in a new and powerful earthquake that struck two weeks after a devastating temblor killed nearly 45,000 people, authorities and media said Tuesday. Turkey’s disaster management authority said six people were killed and 294 others were injured with 18 in critical condition after Monday’s 6.4-magnitude…