On February 6th, 2023 at about 4:17am local time, an earthquake of 7.9 magnitude shook southern central Turkey and western Syria, just 34 km west of Gaziantep. The worst since the Erzincan earthquake in 1939, an estimated 11,000 people have lost their lives so far in this tragedy. Many are still alive under the rubble waiting to be rescued by strained medical teams. In the wake of this crisis a riot that erupted in a military prison in Rajo led to the escape of about 20 prisoners belonging to the Islamic State. About 2,000 prisoners are kept in Rajo Military Prison, of which approximately 1,300 are ISIS members and Kurdish fighters. The people of Syria and Turkey search for hope in these cold, painful days.
The cartoon of the day is “Hope & Pain” by Osama Hajjaj via Cartoon Movement.
