6.3 magnitude earthquake strikes near Turkey-Syria border region
Antakya/IBNS: Another earthquake struck the border region of Turkey and Syria on Monday, just two weeks after both countries were devastated by three quakes leaving more than 47,000 people dead.
Monday's quake, which measured 6.3 magnitudes on Richter Scale, was centred near the southern Turkish city of Antakya and was felt in Syria, Egypt and Lebanon.
It struck at a depth of just two km (1.2 miles), the European Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) said, potentially magnifying its impact at ground level.
The death count from the quakes two weeks ago rose to 41,156 in Turkey, the country's Disaster and Emergency Management Authority AFAD said on Monday, and it was expected to climb further, with 3,85,000 apartments known to have been destroyed or seriously damaged and many people still missing.
President Tayyip Erdogan said construction work on nearly 2,00,000 apartments in 11 earthquake-hit provinces of Turkey would begin next month.
Total U.S. humanitarian assistance to support the earthquake response in Turkey and Syria has reached $185 million, the U.S. State Department said.