Tragic Earthuakes in Turkey and Syria
What a heart-breaking situation is playing out in eastern Turkey and in Syria. Two major earthquakes, 7.8 then 7.7 Richter, have caused major damage and tragically the death toll approaches 4,000 as I write this and is almost certainly going to go much higher.
Edit Wed 8, 2023: The death toll has tragcially now exceeded 7,000 people.
The images on the airwaves and the internet are heart-wrenching. Small children being rescued from under the rubble of collapsed buildings. Multi-story apartment buildings collapsing straight down, crushing and killing people in their sleep.
I applaud the international community in responding quickly with offers of assistance. I particularly applaud the Greek government who is standing by the Turkish and Syrian people, offering their considerable expertise in earthquake response and rescue. This, despite the long-running provocations of the Turkish leadership against Greek sovereignty.
Now is not the time for dealing with the long-term animosity between the two nations. People are suffering and we need to come together to deal with this tragedy.
