Azerbaijan with brotherly Türkiye in good, bad times, rescuers says

By Burak Dag

HATAY, Türkiye (AA) - Azerbaijan stands by brotherly Türkiye in good and bad times, Azerbaijani rescuers say as they continue their relentless efforts to ease the suffering caused by recent earthquakes in Türkiye.

"We are always with you our brotherly country," Mais Aliyev, a first lieutenant with Azerbaijan's Emergency Situations Ministry, told Anadolu in Hatay.

"We were in Kahramanmaras from the first day of the earthquake. After staying there for 11 days, on Feb. 17 we came to Hatay."

Besides causing widespread destruction, the Feb. 6 quakes that shook 11 southern Turkish provinces killed more than 43,000 people.

Personnel from several countries came to Türkiye to help with search and rescue efforts. While many have since returned, Azerbaijanis say they will stay till all operations come to a close.

Besides sending 867 rescuers and medical personnel to the quake-hit region, Azerbaijan dispatched 15 planes, 395 trucks and a train of 25 containers carrying humanitarian aid supplies.

Earlier this week, Turkish authorities announced rescue efforts ended in all provinces except Hatay and Kahramanmaras, the epicenter of the earthquakes.

Azad Haydarov, another official with the Azerbaijani ministry, said: "As our president stresses, we will stay and continue to work here until all rescue and restoration efforts are finalized."

The teams of Türkiye and Azerbaijan are working on the ground, shoulder to shoulder to save lives, he added.

- 'Sorry' for not doing more

While Azerbaijanis saved many lives by pulling people out of the rubble of collapsed buildings, an official said they are sorry for not being able to do more.

"We felt sorry" while pulling out bodies, said Murat Askerov, the team leader of Azerbaijani rescuers in Hatay, the southern province which was also hit by two fresh quakes on Tuesday. "In the first three days after we came to Kahramanmaras, we saved 53 people by working non-stop, day and night."

"We always stand by Türkiye, as a brotherly country and we will do all we can," he reiterated.

In total, Azerbaijani personnel, pulled out alive 53 people from the rubble and recovered 780 bodies. They have also established two tent cities in Kahramanmaras, joining the relief efforts meant not to leave the afflicted on the streets.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has announced the government will begin constructing more than 200,000 homes as early as March in areas devastated by the twin earthquakes.