More than 29,000 dead from earthquake in Turkey, Syria

The death toll by the Turkish-Siri earthquake has gone to over 29,000 as rescue hopes decrease

The riots in southern Turkey have interrupted rescue efforts in several countries following Monday's deadly earthquake, three rescue groups have said.

The death toll in Turkey and Syria from the earthquake has exceeded 28,000, and the hope of finding many survivors is fading despite some miraculous rescues.

German rescuers and the Austrian military suspended search operations Saturday, citing clashes between unidentified groups.

Security is expected to deteriorate as food supplies decrease, a member of the rescue team said.
Turkey's president said he would use powers from the state of emergency to punish anyone who violates the law.

An Austrian Army spokesman said early Saturday that clashes between unidentified groups in the province of Hatay had led dozens of people from the Austrian Forces Relief Unit to seek refuge in a base camp with other international organisations.

“There is increasing aggression among factions in Turkey,” Lieutenant Colonel Pierre Kugelweis said in a statement. “The chances of saving a life have no reasonable connection with the risk of security. ”

Hours after Austria interrupted its rescue efforts, the country's defence ministry said the Turkish military had intervened to provide protection, allowing the resumption of rescue operations.

German branch of search and rescue group I SAR and Germany's Federal Agency for Technical Assistance (TSW) also suspended operations, citing security concerns.

“There are more and more reports of clashes between different factions, also heard shots”, said I spokesman SAR Stefan Heine.

Steven Bayer, Isar's operations manager, said he expected security to deteriorate as food, water and hope become less scarce.

“We are looking closely at the security situation as it develops,” he said.

German rescue teams said they would resume work once Turkish authorities consider the situation secure, Reuters news agency reported.

Turkey's vice president, Fuat Oktay, announced on Saturday that the death toll in Turkey has increased to 24,617.

While Turkey's president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has not commented on the riots reported in Hatay, he reiterated on Saturday that the government will take action against those involved in crimes in the region.

“We have declared the state of emergency”, Erdogan said during a visit to the disaster zone today. “means from now on people involved in robbery or kidnappings should know that the strong hand of the state is on their backs.

State media reported on Saturday that 48 people were arrested for robbery, according to AFP. Turkish state media reported that several weapons were seized, along with money, jewelry and bank cards.

A 26-year-old man looking for a fellow worker in a collapsed building in Antakya told Reuters: “People were breaking windows and fences of stores and cars”.

Turkish police also reportedly have arrested 12 people for the collapsed buildings in the provinces of Gaziantep and Sanliurfa. They included contractors, according to the DHA news agency.

There are also expected to be additional arrests, as Mr. Oktay told reporters late Saturday that prosecutors issued 113 arrest warrants on the buildings.

At least 6,000 buildings collapsed in Turkey, raising questions about whether large-scale tragedy could have been avoided and if President Recep Tayip Erdogan's government could have done more to save lives.

With elections on the verge, the president's future is at stake after 20 years in power and his prayers for national unity were not taken into account.

Erdogan has acknowledged shortcomings in response, but he seems to blame fate on a visit to a disaster zone: “Such things have always happened. It's part of your lucky plan. ”

Wonderful Rescues After 100 Hours Under Ruins

Among the survivors on Saturday was a family of five members removed from the ruins in Turkey's Gaziantep province.

The AP news agency reported that parents, two girls and son were brought to security after five days under their collapsed house, with calls “The Lord is the great”.

The same media reported that a seven - year - old girl was exhumed in the province of Hatay after almost 132 hours in ruins.

The BBC has also released images of the extraordinary rescue of two sisters in Antayya, south of Turkey, from Wednesday.

The quake was described as the worst “in 100 years in this region” by the UN deputy chief, who was in the Turkish province of Kahramanmaras on Saturday.

“I think it's the worst natural disaster I've ever seen, and it's also the most extraordinary international response”, Martin Griffiths Lyse Doucet told the BBC's Radio in Turkey.

“We have more than a hundred countries that have sent people here, so there was an extraordinary answer, but it needs it,” he added.

Griffiths has called for regional policy to be put aside in the face of disaster, and there are some signs that this is happening.

The long conflicted border crossing between Armenia and Turkey reopened on Saturday for the first time in 35 years to allow aid.

And there are reports that the Syrian government has agreed to allow UN assistance in areas controlled by opposition groups, with which they have been involved in a severe civil war since 2011.

The death toll in Syria by the quake now stands at more than 3,500, according to the AFP, but new figures have not been released since Friday.

There has been criticism that the international effort to send aid to Syria has not been fast enough.

Ismail al Abdullah of the Syrian Civil Protection Force, or White Helmet, operating in rebel-controlled areas, told the BBC's Quentin Somemerville that the organisation had banned the search for survival.

The international community has “blood in its hands”, he said. “We needed rescue devices that never came. ”

Sivanka Drinapala, the Syrian representative of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), told AlJazeera that 5.3 million Syrians could be homeless after the earthquake.

“This is a large number and comes to a population that is already suffering massive displacement”, she said.