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Syria and Turkey Earthquake
On February 6, 2023, an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.8 shook central and southern Turkey near Syria’s northern border. Around nine hours later, another earthquake with a magnitude of 7.5 hit a nearby area approximately 59 miles southwest.
The first quake in February was the most fatal in Turkey in over 20 years. Its epicenter was near the city of Gaziantep where many refugees from Syria and charitable organizations are based.
On February 20, 2023, another 6.4-magnitude earthquake took the lives of three people and left 213 injured in southern Turkey. A week later, a 5.6-magnitude earthquake struck the area. It killed at least one person and caused many run-down buildings to collapse.
Three weeks after the first two quakes, the death toll in Turkey and Syria continues to rise. The combined count is over 50,000 bodies. Of that figure, 44,000 are from Turkey, and more than 5,900 are from Syria plus aid workers.
Around 164,321 buildings in Turkey crumbled or sustained extensive structural damage. Meanwhile, in northwest Syria, over 10,000 buildings were fully or partially damaged.
The World Bank’s Global Rapid Post-Disaster Damage Estimation Report pegged Turkey’s damages at $34.2 billion.
In northwest Syria, the earthquakes ravaged around 270 schools, killing 626 students and injuring 1,041.
What Is the Current Situation in Turkey and Syria?
The Turkish government has undertaken extensive disaster response initiatives in the country through the Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) and the Turkish Red Crescent.
The government also issued a fourth-level emergency and called for global aid. International governments rapidly responded to the request by providing aid and deploying rescue teams.
On February 9, 2023, three days after the initial Turkey earthquake, the United States Department of the Treasury declared the issuance of a 180-day “general license” for disaster relief in Syria.
By February 14, the opening of three border-crossing points — Al-Ra’ee, Bab Al-Hawa, and Bab Al-Salam — enabled the delivery of UN aid. On February 22, 282 trucks carrying aid from six UN agencies reached northwest Syria.
As of February 17, the Camp Coordination and Camp Management cluster recorded over 86,000 displacement movements in northwest Syria.
