Earthquakes hit in Turkey and Syria

Lucy Rados '25   ~   March 2023

On February 6, 2023, an earth-shattering event hit in Türkiye* and Syria–literally. A magnitude 7.8 earthquake hit right near the border of Türkiye and Syria. Nine hours later, an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.5 hit to the southwest. This was one of the most destructive earthquakes to hit the area in 20 years. 

Tragically, the earthquake has claimed the lives of 50,000 people, with many more injured, tens of thousands missing, and hundreds of thousands left homeless.

Aid in Türkiye has been led by the Turkish government, with assistance from the United States, United Nations, and other partner organizations and countries, like NGOs such as the Red Cross and Red Crescent Network. 

However, aid is harder to provide in Syria, a country fraught with internal conflicts. This means that the country does not control all of the northwest, where the earthquakes hit, so it is difficult to coordinate aid efforts. The UN has been responsible for providing most of the aid, but hostilities in the region are high, raising claims that necessary aid was being politicized. Additionally, many refugees who rely on regular humanitarian aid live in the areas of Syria affected, making this aid especially difficult to provide.

The drastic impacts are still not over, as aftershocks have continued, and likely will continue for the foreseeable future. Some aftershocks have had a magnitude as high as 6.4, causing more death and destruction of buildings.

With such suffering, it seems difficult to know what to do with this information. However, many organizations are providing aid and asking for help, including the Syrian American Medical Society, UNHCR (United Nations’ Refugee Agency), UNICEF, Turkish Red Crescent, Save the Children, and International Rescue Committee, along with many others. With support, these agencies are able to provide the life saving aid necessary in such a time of crisis.

* Türkiye has been called such by that country since it became a republic in 1923. However, the UN (and US) has just switched from calling it Turkey to Türkiye in 2021.

Title Photo: Picture: UK ISAR Team. commons.wikimedia.org. CC by 2.0