Turkiye, Syria rescue hopes fade, anger rising as death toll passes 16,000

SMA NEWS – ANKARA
The death toll from the Turkiye-Syria earthquakes passed 16,000 Thursday as hope faded of finding more survivors among the rubble of devastated towns and villages.
Across a swathe of southern Turkiye, people sought temporary shelter and food in freezing winter weather, and waited in anguish by piles of rubble where family and friends might still lie buried.
Rescuers were still finding some people alive. But many Turks have complained of a lack of equipment, expertise and support to rescue those trapped — sometimes even as they could hear cries for help.
Authorities have only reached 2-3 percent of collapsed buildings in some affected areas, sources said.
“Where is the state? Where have they been for two days? We are begging them. Let us do it, we can get them out,” Sabiha Alinak said near a snow-covered collapsed building in the city of Malatya where her young relatives were trapped.
In Antakya, dozens of bodies, some covered in blankets and sheets and others in body bags, were lined up on the ground outside a hospital. One survivor, Melek, 64, said she had seen no rescue teams. “We survived the earthquake, but we will die here from hunger or cold.”
There were similar scenes in northern Syria, which was also hard hit by Monday’s two huge quakes. Syria’s ambassador to the UN admitted the regime in Damascus had a “lack of capabilities and lack of equipment,” which he blamed on Western sanctions.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan admitted that his government’s initial response to the disaster had been inadequate, but insisted it was improving.
“We will be better tomorrow and later. We still have some issues with fuel … but we will overcome those too,” Erdogan said on a visit to Kahramanmaras to view the damage and see the rescue and relief effort.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan toured the site of destroyed buildings during his visit to the city of Kahramanmaras. (AFP)
Entire streets in Kahramanmaras, closest city to the quake’s epicenter, were reduced to rubble, with plumes of smoke rising from fires. Hundreds of tents were set up as shelter in a sports stadium. About 50 bodies draped in blankets lay on the floor of a sports hall.
As search and rescue operations continued, the World Health Organization warned that the final death toll could exceed 20,000.