US to provide additional $50 million to support quake-hit Türkiye and Syria

By Betul Yuruk

NEW YORK (AA) - The US announced on Monday an additional $50 million to help the victims of devastating earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria.

The announcement by the US Agency for International Development (USAID) came at an international donors’ conference in Brussels.

"With this additional humanitarian assistance, USAID partners are expanding existing deliveries of food, relief items, shelter, safe water, and sanitation to reach millions in Türkiye and Syria," said a statement.

"In Türkiye, this additional assistance, provided as part of the US government’s response to the Turkish government's request for assistance, is supporting USAID humanitarian partners in addressing the most critical needs of earthquake-affected populations, particularly in hard-to-reach areas".

The additional humanitarian assistance brings the total US earthquake response to $235 million.

More than 50,000 people were killed in powerful earthquakes that struck southern Türkiye on Feb. 6.

The magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 earthquakes, centered in Kahramanmaras province, affected more than 13 million people across 11 provinces, including Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye, Elazig and Sanliurfa.

Several countries in the region, including Syria and Lebanon, also felt the strong tremors that struck Türkiye in fewer than 10 hours.