Turkish president vows to reconstruct quake-hit region

By Diyar Guldogan

ANKARA (AA) – Türkiye’s president on Tuesday pledged to reconstruct the country's southern region in the wake of powerful earthquakes that struck earlier this month.

"With the completion of debris removal activities, we are starting the reconstruction and revival of our region," Recep Tayyip Erdogan told a press briefing in the Kahramanmaras province, where the quakes had their epicenter.

"In a few months, we are starting the construction of 309,000 houses, including village houses, throughout the earthquake zone," he added.

On Feb. 6, the magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 quakes struck 11 provinces – Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Elazig, Hatay, Gaziantep, Kahramanmaras, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye, and Sanliurfa. More than 13 million people in Türkiye have been affected by the devastating quakes, as well as many in northwestern Syria.

Erdogan reiterated that scientists are calling the disaster an "exceptional natural event."

"While we are reviving the provinces, districts, and villages in the quake-hit region, we will speedily transform other parts of our country that face the same threat," he said.

The president also warned the public that aftershock are still continuing and called on them to avoid damaged buildings, adding: "We expect our citizens to be more cautious in this regard."