Turkey expands probe into construction sector after quake

Turkey expands probe into construction sector after quake
by AFP Staff Writers
Ankara (AFP) Feb 23, 2023

Turkish authorities have expanded a criminal probe into individuals responsible for buildings levelled by a deadly earthquake with 564 suspects identified, the interior minister has announced.

A 7.8-magnitude tremor on February 6 and its aftershocks have killed more than 43,000 people in Turkey and left millions without homes.

"160 of them have been detained, 18 are in police custody and 175 have been released on bail," Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said in an interview on the state-run TRT Haber channel late Wednesday.

"We have banned all of those under investigation from travelling. Nothing is more precious than human life.

"We are being thorough."

Tens of thousands of buildings collapsed without warning following the violent tremor as many people slept.

Turkish media has vocally criticised developers for using shoddy materials and failing to comply with construction codes.

In the face of growing anger, several developers were arrested in the first days following the earthquake.

"1,250,000 buildings were examined in 11 provinces. 164,321 buildings made up of 520,000 independent units have already been destroyed, severely damaged or urgently need to be destroyed," Environment Minister Murat Kurum announced on Thursday.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has announced plans to rebuild 270,000 homes in the devastated provinces within one year.

"We are making plans taking into account the cultural landscape, our children's future and guaranteeing our towns are on safe ground," Kurum added.

"We will build the new housing with this in mind."

Hot meals, kids' theatre: volunteers help Syria quake survivors
Aleppo, Syria (AFP) Feb 23, 2023 - Since war-torn Syria was hit by a deadly earthquake, volunteers have kicked into action, cooking food for the homeless, giving free haircuts and bringing cheer to traumatised children.

Amid the rubble of Aleppo, a charity group has set up a free kitchen in a building in a park, where steam rises into the chilly air from huge pots of fragrant rice for the thousands who now live outside.

Around 100 volunteers have worked around the clock since the 7.8-magnitude tremor hit before dawn on February 6 and killed more than 45,000 people across neighbouring Turkey and Syria's northwest.

"It's an emergency we were not prepared for," said Issam Habbal of the Damascus-based Saaed charity, which says it has handed out some 70,000 meals to people living in shelters or out in the open.

Around him, volunteers wearing aprons, hairnets and plastic gloves were cooking rice, preparing chicken meat, chopping vegetables and handing out portions to those queueing up and in desperate need.

Aleppo -- Syria's second city and commercial hub, which became a bloody battleground during years of war -- recorded at least 432 quake deaths out of the country's total disaster toll of more than 3,600 killed.

More than 50 buildings were flattened in Aleppo, most of them in the city's east -- a former rebel stronghold that was devastated during the conflict.

Despite all the suffering, the cooks proudly insist they're doing more than just filling stomachs in the city, which boasts a rich culinary tradition that blends Arab, Turkish and Armenian influences.

"We are in Aleppo, which is famous for its cuisine, its delicacies and its gourmet population," said Habbal. "Our meals must be as good as any served at an Aleppo dinner table."

- 'Fear in their eyes' -

Others are doing their own part in the face of calamity, giving all they have left to those in need, their skills.

Hairdresser Sarkis Hagopian, 21, who is terrified by aftershocks including a 6.4-magnitude quake Monday and who now sleeps in a shelter run by a church, has spent his days giving a trim to anyone who asks.

"It's the only thing I know how to do, so I started providing this service," he told AFP, leaning over a client, his scissors snipping away.

"In times like these, we have to look out for each other... Everyone has to pitch in so we can get through this disaster."

Elsewhere in the city, the actor Sona Slokjian has spent much of her time putting on children's theatre with song and dance, to the delight of shrieking youngsters allowed to at least briefly forget the tragedy.

"A child not only needs food and water, they also want to play and forget," said Slokjian, 38, wearing bright red lipstick, a red-and-white dress and two big bows in her blonde hair.

"I saw the fear in their eyes," said the actor who has two daughters of her own. "So, I decided to volunteer doing what I love: singing and dancing for children."

At a recent show at a church shelter, children with glee in their eyes hummed along to familiar tunes, clapped their hands and laughed at the antics and silly faces of Slokjian's clown sidekick, Lila.

The actor playing Lila, resplendent in a rainbow wig, said afterwards that, while on stage, she is able to briefly block out the carnage around her: "I feel like I am not in the present time... I feel safe.

"This is the least we can do. It doesn't just make the children happy."