A 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck near the Turkish city of Antakya on Monday, killing at least six people and injuring 294, 18 of them seriously. The tremor occurred at 20:04 local time at a depth of 10 km, followed by a 5.8 aftershock three minutes later and dozens of weaker aftershocks.
The quake hit the same region devastated by the 6 February earthquakes, which killed over 44,000 people in Turkey and Syria. Buildings weakened by those earlier tremors collapsed, but the death toll remained relatively low because the area was largely empty after the previous disaster.
Residents described panic and fear. Muna al-Omar, holding her seven-year-old son, told Reuters: 'I thought the earth was going to split open under my feet.' Ali Mazlum, 18, said he was searching for family members' bodies from the earlier quakes when the new tremor struck: 'You don't know what to do... we grabbed each other and right in front of us, the walls started to fall.'
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, visiting the southern province of Osmaniye, promised to hold accountable those responsible for shoddy construction that led to deaths in the initial quake. Shortly after, officials issued over 100 arrest warrants related to collapsed buildings.
In Syria, around 470 injured people sought hospital treatment after Monday's quakes, which were also felt in Egypt and Lebanon. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced $100 million in humanitarian aid during a visit to Turkey, saying America would help 'for as long as it takes'.
Rescue operations have been wound down in all but two areas, with hopes of finding survivors fading. Authorities warned those in affected areas to be cautious of falling debris.
