Devastating photographs show the aftermath of a 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck southeast Turkey and northern Syria on Monday as the death toll rises.
At least 2,500 people have died as a result of the earthquake, which has generated dozens of powerful aftershocks, officials in Turkey and Syria have reported.
“Because the debris removal efforts are continuing in many buildings in the earthquake zone, we do not know how high the number of dead and injured will rise,” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.
Nearly 2,500 people were rescued from about 3,000 collapsed buildings, Erdogan said in a televised address.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said members of the alliance were mobilizing support for Turkey. Erdogan said offers for help had been received from about 45 countries.
People and emergency teams search for people in a destroyed building in Adana, Turkey, Monday, Feb. 6, 2023.
Civil defense workers and residents search through the rubble of collapsed buildings in the town of Harem near the Turkish border, Idlib province, Syria, on Feb. 6, 2023.
Members of the Syrian civil defense, known as the White Helmets look for casualties under the rubble following an earthquake in the town of Zardana in the countryside of the northwestern Syrian Idlib province, early on February 6, 2023.
Residents stand in front of a collapsed building following an earthquake in the town of Jandaris, in the countryside of Syria's northwestern city of Afrin in the rebel-held part of Aleppo province, on Feb. 6, 2023.
People walk next to a mosque destroyed by an earthquake in Malatya, Turkey, Monday, Feb. 6, 2023. A powerful quake has knocked down multiple buildings in southeast Turkey and Syria and many casualties are feared.
People and rescue teams try to reach trapped residents inside collapsed buildings in Adana, Turkey, Monday, Feb. 6, 2023.
Rescue workers and medical teams try to reach trapped residents in a collapsed building following and earthquake in Diyarbakir, southeastern Turkey, early Monday, Feb. 6, 2023.
A family who fled the war in Syria and live in Beirut, sit outside their home following an earthquake that hit neighboring Turkey early Monday, Feb. 6, 2023, in south of Beirut, Lebanon. Many residents in Lebanon left their homes and took to the streets or drove in their cars away from buildings. A powerful earthquake hit southeast Turkey and Syria early Monday, toppling buildings and sending panicked residents pouring outside in a cold winter night.
Rescue teams try to reach trapped residents inside collapsed buildings in Adana, Turkey, Monday, Feb. 6, 2023.
Syrian citizen search through the wreckage of a collapsed building, in Azmarin town, in Idlib province north Syria, Monday, Feb. 6, 2023.
People and emergency teams rescue a person on a stretcher from a collapsed building in Adana, Turkey, Monday, Feb. 6, 2023. A powerful quake has knocked down multiple buildings in southeast Turkey and Syria and many casualties are feared. (IHA agency via AP)
Damaged vehicles sit parked in front of a collapsed building following an earthquake in Diyarbakir, southeastern Turkey, early Monday, Feb. 6, 2023. A powerful quake has knocked down multiple buildings in southeast Turkey and Syria and many casualties are feared. (Depo Photos via AP)
People search a collapsed building following an earthquake in Azmarin town, Idlib province, northern Syria, Monday, Feb. 6, 2023.
Rescue workers try to reach trapped residents in a collapsed building in Kahta, in Adiyaman province, southeastern Turkey, Monday, Feb. 6, 2023.
Earthquake victims receive treatment at the al-Rahma Hospital in the town of Darkush, Idlib province, northern Syria, Monday, Feb. 6, 2023. A powerful earthquake has caused significant damage in southeast Turkey and Syria and many casualties are feared. Damage was reported across several Turkish provinces, and rescue teams were being sent from around the country. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
Civil defense workers and security forces search through the wreckage of collapsed buildings in Hama, Syria, Monday, Feb. 6, 2023.
Civil defense workers and security forces carry an earthquake victim as they search through the wreckage of collapsed buildings in Hama, Syria, Monday, Feb. 6, 2023.
Contributing: The Associated Press
Camille Fine is a trending visual producer on USA TODAY's NOW team.
Reuters/Misha Japaridze/Pool/File PhotoYevgeny Prigozhin is preparing to pull his Wagner Group mercenaries’ attention away from the war in Ukraine, according to a Bloomberg report that cites sources familiar with the matter.His current plan is to focus the private mercenaries’ focus back to countries in Africa, such as Sudan, Mali, and the Central African Republic, where Wagner has deployed forces. On Monday, Wagner posted a recruitment notice offering deployments to African countries that would
Brie Larson flashes her six-pack abs in a nipple-baring top in new photos. She keeps fit by doing incredibly challenging workout moves like one-armed pull-ups!
In light of President Joe Biden’s visit to Canada, a new survey gives surprising insights into how people across this country feel about our current relationship with the U.S.
From the moment the first bullets were fired in the Ukraine conflict, Western support for Kyiv has been constrained by needless concerns about the impact it might have on Russia.
It was the 19th-century military theorist Carl von Clausewitz who described war as “the realm of uncertainty”. In Ukraine, the fog of war is thick, and growing ever thicker. It’s impossible to gauge the true state of the battles raging in the east of the country. For some, Ukraine’s heroic defence against the renewed Russian offensive marks a victory of sorts. For others, the high losses they are sustaining are indicative of Russia’s ability to remobilise and regroup.
