Destruction of the Galeria Business Center in Diyarbakır, Turkey. Image Courtesy of Mahmut Bozarslan (Voice of America)
A major 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit central Turkey and north-west Syria this Monday morning, with a second 7.4 magnitude quake reported a few hours later in the same region, according to reports from the Guardian. Among the most affected areas is Gaziantep, located at 150 miles from the border with Syria and 50 miles from the earthquake’s epicenter in Kahramanmaraş. Tremors were felt as far away as Lebanon, Greece, Israel and the island of Cyprus. Authorities are still assessing the number of victims, as local and international rescue teams have been deployed to search for survivors. Early estimates report that over 1,700 buildings have collapsed or have been critically damaged, as confirmed by Turkey’s Vice President Fuat Oktay.