CORRECTS – Al-Azhar calls on entire world to provide relief for quake victims in Türkiye, Syria

CORRECTS DATELINE

ANKARA (AA) – Egypt's Al-Azhar, the highest seat of Sunni Islamic learning, called on Wednesday for global efforts to provide relief for earthquake victims in Türkiye and Syria.

“Our hearts are torn with pain for the terrible scenes of the devastating earthquake that hit Syria and Türkiye,” Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, Sheikh Ahmed Al-Tayeb, said on Twitter.

“I call on the entire world to rise up for the relief of the afflicted, to help the wounded and homeless, and to hasten to save the people trapped under the rubble,” he added.

A magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck southern Türkiye's Kahramanmaras province early Monday and another magnitude 7.6 quake hit the same area in the afternoon, killing at least 8,574 people and injuring 49,133 others, according to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

In Syria, government and rescue officials reported that nearly 2,530 people were killed and over 4,645 others wounded in the quakes.

*Writing by Mahmoud Barakat