Turkey and Syria faces strong Earthquake

Strong earthquake in Turkey and neighbouring Syria. Reports are coming out that more than 100 people have died in both the countries. An earthquake measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale was felt in south-eastern Turkey. An aftershock of 6.7 on the Richter scale was also felt 15 minutes later. Many buildings collapsed. There are also reports that many people are trapped inside. Movement was felt in Lebanon and Cyprus. Local media reported that 53 people died in Turkey and 42 in Syria. The governor announced that 23 people were killed in the Turkish city of Malatya. Reuters news agency quoted the governor as saying that 420 people were injured and 140 buildings were destroyed. 17 people died in Urfa namely Usmania (7) and Diyarbakir (6). It is reported that the death toll will increase. At least 42 people have died in government-held areas in Syria, the official Syrian news agency SANA reported, citing health ministry sources. 200 people were injured. The earthquake affected Aleppo, Hama and Latakia. The earthquake occurred at 4.17 am local time. A powerful earthquake occurred while people were sleeping. Footage emerged of shocked people running around in panic. Efforts are on to evacuate people from the collapsed buildings. The epicenter was 17.9 kilometres below ground in Gaziantep, south-eastern Turkey, near the border with Syria.