A devastating pair of earthquakes have hit southern Turkey and northern Syria today - bulldozing buildings and tragically leaving more than 1,300 people reported as dead, with many more left trapped in the aftermath.
The first quake - measured to hold 7.8 magnitude - struck earlier this morning, while the second more recently took place shortly just before 11.00am, according to multiple news outlets.
The subsequent second earthquake measured at around 7.5 on the Richter scale.
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Warning: This article contains images that some readers may find distressing.
The Mirror reports that numerous people were left trapped and injured across the countries - with the quake striking as many were sleeping. The tremors are also said to have been felt as far afield as the likes of Cyprus, Jordan, Israel, Lebanon and Egypt.
Italy also issued a tsunami alert for coastal populations due to the magnitude of the disaster. Most of the damage is in southern Turkey and northern and central Syria and the death toll is expected to grow as casualty reports come in from individual provinces.
Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Agency said at least 284 people were killed in seven Turkish provinces. The death toll in government-held areas of Syria climbed to 386, according to Syrian state media.
At least 120 people were killed in rebel-held areas, according to the White Helmets. Multiple aftershocks have continued to be reported throughout the morning, with hundreds of buildings damaged forcing residents to pour outside on a cold winter night.
Syria has been devastated by more than 11 years of civil war, plus an economic and Covid-19 crisis. Many of the victims were living in squalid conditions and with little access to healthcare.
The epicentre of the first earthquake was near the city of Gaziantep, about 60 miles from the Syrian border. Along with several cities, the area is home to home to millions of Syrian refugees who fled their country's long-running civil war.
Turkey, which borders Syria to the north, hosts the largest number of Syrian refugees in the world. Thousands of people have fled Syrian dictator Assad's brutal bombardment and are now suffering through an enormous earthquake in the middle of winter.
“Unfortunately, at the same time, we are also struggling with extremely severe weather conditions,” Vice President Fuat Otkay told reporters. Nearly 2,800 search and rescue teams have been deployed in the disaster-stricken areas, he added.
Europe’s politicians are now waking woke up to the news, offering assistance as well as condolences. The British Foreign Secretary, James Cleverly, has said that his country stands by ready to help, tweeting: "Tragic loss of life in the Turkey and Syria earthquake. Our condolences go to the families of those who died and our thoughts are with the survivors.
"The UK stands ready to provide assistance."
The last time a quake of that power shook Turkey was in 1939 when close to 33,000 were killed.
Turkey's top earthquake scientist has described the earthquake as the biggest in over two decades: "We are facing the biggest earthquake in 24 years in this part of the world," Dr Haluk Ozener, director of the earthquake research centre at Istanbul's Bogazici University, said in a statement on Monday.
"It was felt across our borders in Turkey, Northern Cyprus, Iraq and Syria and led to the loss of life in some places. So far, 100 aftershocks have occurred", he continued.
He said he expected the aftershocks to continue in the coming days with a decreased intensity but warned that 'these earthquakes can last up to a year'.
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