عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
World

Türkiye Earthquake Damage Set to Exceed $100 Bln, Says UN Agency

This picture shows collapsed buildings in Hatay on March 6, 2023, one month after a massive earthquake struck southeastern Türkiye. (AFP)
This picture shows collapsed buildings in Hatay on March 6, 2023, one month after a massive earthquake struck southeastern Türkiye. (AFP)
TT
20
TT

Türkiye Earthquake Damage Set to Exceed $100 Bln, Says UN Agency

This picture shows collapsed buildings in Hatay on March 6, 2023, one month after a massive earthquake struck southeastern Türkiye. (AFP)
This picture shows collapsed buildings in Hatay on March 6, 2023, one month after a massive earthquake struck southeastern Türkiye. (AFP)

Damage caused by a devastating earthquake in Türkiye will exceed $100 billion, a UN Development Program official told a press briefing on Tuesday ahead of a major donor conference next week.

"It's clear from the calculations being done to date that the damage figure presented by the government and supported by...international partners would be in excess of $100 billion," said the UNDP's Louisa Vinton, by video link from Gaziantep.

More than 52,000 people were killed in Türkiye and Syria by the Feb. 6 earthquakes, with many being crushed or buried in their sleep.

The provisional damage figure, which Vinton said covers just Türkiye, is being used as a basis for a donor conference to mobilize funds for earthquake victims in Brussels, Belgium on March 16, she added.

The World Bank previously estimated the Türkiye damage at around $34.2 billion.

Vinton described the scenes in Türkiye’s worst-hit Hatay province as "apocalyptic", saying hundreds of thousands of homes have been destroyed.

"The needs are vast but the resources are scarce," she added.

Most Viewed

 
World

Putin Says He Hopes there Will Be No Need to Use Nuclear Weapons in Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends the educational marathon at the Victory Museum on Poklonnaya Gora in Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (Alexander Kazakov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends the educational marathon at the Victory Museum on Poklonnaya Gora in Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (Alexander Kazakov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
TT
20
TT

Putin Says He Hopes there Will Be No Need to Use Nuclear Weapons in Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends the educational marathon at the Victory Museum on Poklonnaya Gora in Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (Alexander Kazakov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends the educational marathon at the Victory Museum on Poklonnaya Gora in Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (Alexander Kazakov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

Russian President Vladimir Putin said in comments broadcast on Sunday that the need to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine had not arisen, and that he hoped it would not arise.
In a fragment of an upcoming interview with Russian state television published on Telegram, Putin said that Russia has the strength and the means to bring the conflict in Ukraine to a "logical conclusion", Reuters reported.
Responding to a question about Ukrainian strikes on Russia from a state television reporter, Putin said: "There has been no need to use those (nuclear) weapons ... and I hope they will not be required."
He said: "We have enough strength and means to bring what was started in 2022 to a logical conclusion with the outcome Russia requires."
Putin in February 2022 ordered tens of thousands of Russian troops into Ukraine, in what the Kremlin calls a "special military operation" against its neighbor.
Though Russian troops were repelled from Kyiv, Moscow's forces currently control around 20% of Ukraine, including much of the south and east.
Putin has in recent weeks expressed willingness to negotiate a peace settlement, as US President Donald Trump has said he wants to end the conflict via diplomatic means.
Fear of nuclear escalation has been a factor in US officials' thinking since Russia invaded Ukraine in early 2022. Former CIA Director William Burns has said there was a real risk in late 2022 that Russia could use nuclear weapons against Ukraine.