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Turkey-Syria quake: Death tolls mounts to 4,300; cities flattened, WHO fears 20,000 may have died

The confirmed death toll mounted to over 4,300 due to mammoth earthquake that tore apart Turkey and neigbouring Syria on Monday even as the World Health Organization (WHO) fears that over 20,000 may have died as rescuers continued to dig the bodies and survivors from beneath the rubble of thousands of buildings flattened by the disastrous tremors.

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Turkey earthquake

The confirmed death toll mounted to over 4,300 due to mammoth earthquake that tore apart Turkey and neigbouring Syria on Monday even as the World Health Organization (WHO) fears that over 20,000 may have died as rescuers continued to dig the bodies and survivors from beneath the rubble of thousands of buildings flattened by the disastrous tremors.

According to official reports, the confirmed death toll across the two countries has soared above 4,300 after a swarm of strong tremors struck near the Turkey-Syria border.

WHO officials fear that the toll may soar to unimaginable numbers, estimating that 20,000 people may have died.

Reports from the Turkish and Syrian disaster response teams said that over 5,600 buildings have been felled across several cities, including many multi-storey apartment blocks that were filled with sleeping residents when the first quake struck.

An AFP report quoting eyewitnesses in the Kahramanmaras city of southeastern Turkey struggled to comprehend the scale of the disaster as some believed that this was the Apocalypse- the end of days.

Turkey’s relief agency AFAD on Tuesday confirmed that there were now 2,921 deaths in Turkey alone bringing the confirmed tally to 4,365.

Reporters from news agencies and rescue workers have reported horrific scenes from ground zero as sky scrapers continue to tumble left and right with survivors clamoring for safety.

In Gaziantep, a Turkish city home to countless Syrian refugees from the war-torn countries’s decade-old civil war, rescuers picking through the rubble screamed, cried and clamoured for safety as another building collapsed nearby without warning, AFP said in its report.

As per reports, the first quake- measured at 7.8 magnitude- was so massive that it was felt as far away as Greenland, and the impact is big enough to have sparked a global response.

Dozens of nations from Ukraine to New Zealand have vowed to send help, although freezing rain and sub-zero temperatures have slowed the response.

India dispatched the batch of relief material to disaster hit Turkey, hours after an announcement made about the same by the Prime Minister’s Office.

According to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), the first batch of earthquake relief material to Turkey- which consists of an expert National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) search and rescue team, highly-skilled dog squads, a range of medical supplies, advanced drilling equipment, and other crucial tools required for the relief efforts- was dispatched aboard an Indian Air Force aircraft.

In the southeastern Turkish city of Sanliurfa, rescuers were working into the night to try and pull survivors from the wreckage of a seven-storey building that had collapsed.

Some of the heaviest devastation occurred near the quake’s epicentre between Kahramanmaras and Gaziantep, where entire city blocks lay in ruins as snow gathers.

On Monday, according to the US Geological Survey, the first quake hit at 4:17am (0117 GMT) at a depth of about 18 kilometres (11 miles) near the Turkish city of Gaziantep, home to around two million people.

Reports by various rescue and disaster relief agencies have estimated that over 14,000 people have been injured Turkey, while at least 3,411 people were reported injured in Syria.

Officials said three major airports have been rendered inoperable, complicating deliveries of vital aid and a winter blizzard has covered major roads into the area in ice and snow.

The Syrian health ministry reported damage across the provinces of Aleppo, Latakia, Hama and Tartus, where Russia is leasing a naval facility.

Even before the tragedy, buildings in Aleppo — Syria’s pre-war commercial hub — often collapsed due to the dilapidated infrastructure, which has suffered from a lack of wartime oversight. Officials cut off natural gas and power supplies across the region as a precaution, also closing schools for two weeks.

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WHO fears death toll may soar

WHO officials fear that the toll may soar to unimaginable numbers, estimating that 20,000 people may have died.

The global agency’s senior emergency officer for Europe, Catherine Smallwood told news agency AFP that there’s a continued potential of further collapses to happen as she feared an eight-fold increase in the death count.

Smallwood said that as the per the analysis of the initial reports, the number of dead and injured will, unfortunately, increased “quite significantly” in the following weeks as the dust settle and rescue workers recover more bodies from beneath the rubble.

The WHO official warned that people who’ve lost their homes will be meeting and gathering in collective environments which poses particular risks such as overcrowding and exposure to freezing temperatures. This, she added, may put the survivors at the mercy of respiratory viruses.

Turkey is in one of the world’s most active seismic zones in the world. A 7.8-magnitude tremor in 1939 killed over 33,000 people in the eastern Erzincan province.

The Turkish region of Duzce suffered a 7.4-magnitude earthquake in 1999, when more than 17,000 people died.

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India, China complete disengagement in Depsang, Demchok at LAC after 4 years standoff

The Indian Army said that coordinated patrolling will start soon by both sides, and the ground commanders will continue to hold talks.

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India, China complete disengagement in Depsang, Demchok at LAC after 4 years standoff

In a significant development, India and China have completed the disengagement exercise in the Depsang and Demchok friction points at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh. The troops of both the countries are now verifying the vacation of positions and removal of infrastructure.

Reportedly, the Indian Army said that coordinated patrolling will start soon by both sides, and the ground commanders will continue to hold talks. The two sides will exchange sweets for Diwali tomorrow.

Earlier, Foreign secretary Vikram Misri announced that New Delhi and Beijing reached an agreement to disengage in the remaining friction points at LAC in eastern Ladakh. After the agreement, the two countries began troops disengagement at the two friction points at Demchok and Depsang plains on October 23.

India-China relations worsened because of the Chinese troops’ aggression along the Line of Actual Control, the de facto border, in April 2020. It further deteriorated on June 15, 2020, after 20 Indian soldiers died in the line of duty thwarting the Chinese offensive in the Galwan Valley. New Delhi had said India’s bilateral relations with China will normalise only after the situation at the LAC returns to what it was before May 2020.

Reports said that the Indian Army and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) have pulled back their forward-deployed troops and equipment from the two flashpoints, and have also dismantled temporary structures that had been built during the four-year-long standoff.

The Indian soldiers will resume their patrolling in areas that had been cut off because of the PLA’s presence. Nonetheless, the disengagement in Depsang and Demchok will not lead to the creation of buffer zones.

Both the countries had disengaged from Galwan Valley, Pangong Tso, Gogra (PP-17A) and Hot Springs (PP-15) areas and created buffer zones. Speaking to a newspaper publication, Lieutenant General Vinod Bhatia (retd), a former director general of military operations said that the disengagement at Depsang and Demchok will facilitate patrolling by both sides in a coordinated manner, and in the agreed upon frequency and strength of the patrolling parties.

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Iran says 2 soldiers killed in Israeli air strikes

Emphasising Iran’s right to self-defense under the UN Charter, the Iranian Foreign Ministry highlighted its obligation to counter foreign aggression.

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The Iranian Army said on Saturday that two of its soldiers were killed in Israeli air strikes that targeted military bases.

Iran stated that its air defenses effectively countered the attack, resulting in the unfortunate deaths of two soldiers and some areas suffering limited damage.

The Israeli military conducted strikes on Iranian military sites after 2 am on Saturday, responding to what they cited as ongoing attacks by Iran and its allies in the region.

Following the strikes, the Israeli military announced they had successfully completed the mission and achieved their objectives.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed the precise targeting of military sites in Iran to neutralize immediate threats to Israel.

“I can now confirm that we have concluded the Israeli response to Iran’s attacks against Israel. We conducted targeted and precise strikes on military targets in Iran — thwarting immediate threats to the State of Israel,” the Israel Defence Force posted on X.

Iran’s air defense headquarters acknowledged the hits on bases in Ilam, Khuzestan, and Tehran but asserted that these attacks were effectively repelled, with investigations ongoing to assess damages. Moreover, Iran indicated its readiness to retaliate against any Israeli aggression, stating that Israel would face proportional consequences for its actions.

Iran expressed its intentions to respond to the Israeli attacks on its military bases, condemning the actions as a violation of international law and the UN Charter’s principles on the use of force.

Emphasising Iran’s right to self-defense under the UN Charter, the Iranian Foreign Ministry highlighted its obligation to counter foreign aggression.

Pakistan strongly condemned Israel’s strikes on Iran, attributing the escalation to Israel and urging the UN Security Council to intervene for peace and security.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer emphasised that Iran should refrain from retaliating against Israel, advocating for restraint on all sides to prevent further escalation.

“I am clear that Israel has the right to defend itself against Iranian aggression. I’m equally clear that we must avoid further regional escalation and urge all sides to restrain. Iran should not respond,” the PM said at a Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.

The United States advised Iran to halt its attacks on Israel to cease the ongoing violence and break the cycle of conflict, underlining the importance of de-escalation.

“We urge Iran to cease its attacks on Israel so that this cycle of fighting can end without further escalation,” U.S. National Security Council spokesman Sean Savett told reporters.

President Joe Biden was briefed on the Israeli operation throughout its development and execution by his National Security Adviser, Jake Sullivan.

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BRICS Summit: PM Modi, China’s Xi Jinping discuss Ukraine war with Russia’s Putin

“The world has entered a new period of turbulent change. We need to build a peaceful BRICS, and be the guardian of common security,” said Chinese President Xi Jinping during the Summit.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi, China’s Xi Jinping, and other BRICS leaders on Wednesday discussed the war in Ukraine with President Vladimir Putin as the Kremlin chief chaired a major summit aimed at showing Western attempts to isolate Russia have failed.

India supports dialogue and diplomacy and not war, PM Modi said at the BRICS Summit, in an unambiguous message calling for resolution of the Russia-Ukraine conflict through peaceful negotiations.

Putin, whose administration has dismissed allegations of war crimes against him as politically motivated, kicked off the Summit on Wednesday by noting the strong interest from over 30 States in joining the BRICS group.

He emphasised the importance of maintaining a balance in any expansion, acknowledging the unprecedented interest from countries in the Global South and East while ensuring that it does not diminish the effectiveness of BRICS.

“The world has entered a new period of turbulent change. We need to build a peaceful BRICS, and be the guardian of common security,” said Chinese President Xi Jinping during the Summit.

On the Ukraine crisis, Jinping said, “We need to push for the situation to de-escalate as soon as possible.” He also expressed his concern over the crisis in Gaza, saying, “We need to push for a ceasefire.”

PM Modi emphasised the need for a people-centric approach to solving global challenges and called for reformed multilateralism. The PM underlined the importance of dialogue and diplomacy for global peace and stability.

Addressing the summit in Kazan, a Russian city along the Volga, Europe’s longest river, Putin also reiterated the group’s focus on discussing acute regional conflicts, alluding to the situation in the Middle East and Ukraine.

Russia, heavily reliant on oil exports, sees China and India as major buyers, with the two countries responsible for about 90% of Moscow’s oil sales, making it Russia’s largest foreign currency source.

In a public exchange, Prime Minister Modi expressed his desire for peace in Ukraine to Putin, while Chinese President Xi discussed the Ukrainian conflict privately with the Russian leader.

As Russia continues its advancement, it currently controls a significant portion of Ukraine, including Crimea, unilaterally annexed in 2014, as well as a substantial portion of the Donbas region, comprising Donetsk and Luhansk, along with parts of the Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions.

Putin has reiterated that Moscow will not negotiate the status of these regions, claiming them as part of Russia and emphasising the need to consider Russia’s long-term security interests in Europe.

The anticipated BRICS communique is expected to include proposals from China and Brazil aimed at resolving the conflict in Ukraine, with the two countries seeking support for a ceasefire from other developing nations. Ukraine has accused Beijing and Brasília of aligning with Moscow’s interests.

Putin has acknowledged the potential of the Chinese-Brazilian proposals as a basis for ending the conflict, following Russia’s deployment of troops into Ukraine in 2022 after years of fighting in the eastern part of the country.

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