Türkiye, Syria Quake: International Support and Offers of Aid

Rescue workers search for survivors under the rubble of a collapsed building in Diyarbakir, southeastern Türkiye, Monday, Feb. 6, 2023. (AP)
Rescue workers search for survivors under the rubble of a collapsed building in Diyarbakir, southeastern Türkiye, Monday, Feb. 6, 2023. (AP)
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Türkiye, Syria Quake: International Support and Offers of Aid

Rescue workers search for survivors under the rubble of a collapsed building in Diyarbakir, southeastern Türkiye, Monday, Feb. 6, 2023. (AP)
Rescue workers search for survivors under the rubble of a collapsed building in Diyarbakir, southeastern Türkiye, Monday, Feb. 6, 2023. (AP)

Governments and international organizations have responded with offers of support after an earthquake of magnitude 7.8 struck central Türkiye and northwest Syria. Hundreds of people have been killed.

WHO chief Tedros said its network of emergency medical teams has been activated to provide essential health care for the injured and most vulnerable affected by the earthquake.

Russia said it is readying rescue teams to fly to Türkiye to help earthquake victims there and in Syria.

A minister of emergency situations, Aleksandr Kurenkov, said teams of 100 search and rescue personnel are on standby to be sent to Türkiye with two Il-76 transport planes.

Russian President Vladimir Putin also offered condolences in telegrams to the leaders of Syria and Türkiye and expressed readiness to help.

The offer was made despite Russia's international isolation led by Western nations over Moscow's war on Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy sent a message of support to Türkiye to offer assistance in the aftermath of the earthquake.

“I am shocked to learn of deaths and injuries of hundreds of people as a result of the earthquake in Türkiye,” Zelenskyy wrote in a tweet.

“We send our condolences to the families of the victims and wish the injured a speedy recovery. At this time, we stand by the friendly Turkish people and are ready to provide the necessary assistance.”

Ukraine has close ties with Türkiye, which helped negotiate a Black Sea grain agreement last summer to resume vital exports as the war in the country continues.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte says a search and rescue team from the Netherlands will travel to the region of southeastern Türkiye and northern Syria.

“Terrible news about the earthquake in Türkiye and Syria. Our thoughts are with all the victims of this severe natural disaster,” Rutte said in a tweet Monday. He said he had sent condolences to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Dutch organization Urban Search and Rescue sends teams, including rescue workers, construction experts, doctors, nurses and sniffer dogs to the scenes of disasters around the world.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has also offered help.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says authorities are preparing to send aid and assistance to Türkiye. He said Israel was readying to send search and rescue teams and medical aid, after a request from Türkiye’s government.

The two countries are in the process of mending ties after years of tensions.

Writing in Turkish, Israeli President Isaac Herzog offered help in a message on Twitter, adding: “The State of Israel is always ready to send aid by any means possible. Our hearts go out to the families and Turkish people who are grieving at this painful time.”

Bulgaria’s Foreign Ministry has offered condolences on the loss of life in Türkiye and Syria.

The neighboring country said it is sending rescue teams to Türkiye to assist local authorities there to deal with the aftermath of the devastating earthquake.

Bulgaria’s defense minister announced that two Spartan military transport aircraft will take off to the city of Adana in southeast Türkiye with emergency teams of firefighters, rescue workers and medics.

Türkiye’s neighbor Greece and other countries in the region have offered to send immediate assistance to help with the rescue effort.

“Greece is mobilizing its resources and will assist immediately ... (we are) deeply saddened by the devastating earthquake disaster,” Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis wrote in a tweet.



Russia Focusing Airstrikes on Ukraine Draft Offices to Derail Recruitment, Kyiv Says

A view shows ruins of buildings in the abandoned town of Marinka (Maryinka), which was destroyed in the course of Russia-Ukraine conflict in the Donetsk region, a Russian-controlled area of Ukraine, April 1, 2025. (Reuters)
A view shows ruins of buildings in the abandoned town of Marinka (Maryinka), which was destroyed in the course of Russia-Ukraine conflict in the Donetsk region, a Russian-controlled area of Ukraine, April 1, 2025. (Reuters)
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Russia Focusing Airstrikes on Ukraine Draft Offices to Derail Recruitment, Kyiv Says

A view shows ruins of buildings in the abandoned town of Marinka (Maryinka), which was destroyed in the course of Russia-Ukraine conflict in the Donetsk region, a Russian-controlled area of Ukraine, April 1, 2025. (Reuters)
A view shows ruins of buildings in the abandoned town of Marinka (Maryinka), which was destroyed in the course of Russia-Ukraine conflict in the Donetsk region, a Russian-controlled area of Ukraine, April 1, 2025. (Reuters)

Russia killed two people in an airstrike on the central Ukrainian city of Poltava on Thursday and damaged a military draft office there in what Kyiv said was a concerted campaign to disrupt recruitment for its war effort.

The strike on Poltava, which also injured 47 people and caused a fire at the city's main draft office, followed a drone attack on Monday near a recruitment center in Kryvyi Rih. Both cities are regional capitals.

"We understand that their (Russian) goal is to disrupt the mobilisation process," Vitaliy Sarantsev, a spokesperson for Ukraine's ground forces, told Ukraine's public broadcaster, Reuters reported.

"But I want to say that...it is too early (for Russia) to uncork the champagne because the process is impossible to stop."

Ukraine has struggled to fend off a bigger and better-equipped Russian army, and its call-up process has been marred by reports of draft-office corruption, poor training and weak battlefield command.

Well into the fourth year of its full-scale invasion, Russia has gained ground in eastern Ukraine and repeatedly hit cities far behind the front lines with drones and missiles, while also waging a sabotage campaign there, Kyiv's domestic security agency says.

In a statement to Reuters last month, the Security Service of Ukraine said it had arrested more than 700 people since 2024 for alleged crimes that included arson attacks on troop vehicles and bombings at draft offices.

A Ukrainian security official, who requested anonymity to discuss sensitive matters, said Russia was aiming to derail Kyiv's military call-up effort also by spreading disinformation and hacking recruitment office computers.

"The disruption of mobilisation is closely linked to the spread of panic and intimidation of the population," the source said, adding that bombings were part of the general strategy.

INTENSIFYING STRIKES

Russian forces have also stepped up strikes on military training grounds in recent weeks, prompting Kyiv's top general to order a strengthening of security measures at bases.

A missile attack on southeastern Ukraine this week killed a brigade commander. Ukrainian forces have also staged longer-range attacks on Russian bases in occupied territory as well as deep inside Russia.

Thursday's strike on Poltava came after the US said it had paused some weapons shipments to Ukraine, which drew warnings in Kyiv that the move would harm Ukraine's defence against intensifying Russian air strikes and battlefield gains.

Separately on Thursday, two people were killed in a ballistic missile strike on port infrastructure in the southern Ukrainian city of Odesa, said regional governor Oleh Kiper.

Dozens of people have been killed in recent drone and missile salvoes at Ukrainian cities, including the capital Kyiv.