Survivors still being found as earthquake death toll in Turkey and Syria passes 28,000
- At least 48 people were arrested in Turkey for looting or trying to defraud victims in the aftermath of the 7.8-magnitude earthquake, state media reported
- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has urged the Security Council to authorise the opening of new cross-border aid points between Turkey and Syria
Rescuers pulled a two-month-old baby and an elderly woman from the rubble on Saturday, five days after an earthquake devastated Turkey and Syria leaving more than 28,000 dead.
But security concerns led some aid operations to be suspended, and 48 people have been arrested for looting or trying to defraud victims in the aftermath of the earthquake in Turkey, state media reported.
Tens of thousands of rescuers are still scouring through flattened neighbourhoods despite freezing weather that has deepened the misery of millions now in desperate need of aid.
02:57
Turkey-Syria earthquake: Chinese rescue team saves woman trapped for 80 hours
In the midst of destruction and despair, miraculous tales of survival continue to emerge.
“Is the world there?” asked 70-year-old Menekse Tabak as she was pulled out from the concrete in the southern city of Kahramanmaras – the epicentre of Monday’s 7.8-magnitude tremor – to applause and cries praising God, according to a video on state broadcaster TRT Haber.
In the city of Antakya, a two-month-old baby was found alive 128 hours after the earthquake, state news agency Anadolu reported.
A two-year-old girl, a six-month pregnant woman, and a four-year-old and her father were among those rescued five days after the earthquake, Turkish media reported.