The death toll in Turkey has risen to 21,848, according to the country’s President Erdogan.
Some 3,553 people are reported to have died in Syria, according to the AFP news agency, bringing the total number of deaths across both countries to 25,401.
What’s been happening?
If you’re just joining us or need a recap, here’s the latest from Turkey and Syria five days after the devastating earthquake struck:
- The death toll from Monday’s quake has now surpassed 24,500 – including 21,043 people who have died in Turkey and a reported 3,553 in Syria
- Search operations are still under way and despite hope fading that many more people will be found alive, there have been reports of miraculous rescues, including one boy who was reportedly stretchered out of the rubble in Turkey after 128 hours
- Further aftershocks have been felt in the city of Gaziantep, located near the quake’s epicentre, while in neighbouring Syria, one aid worker says traumatised children still think the ground is shaking
- A spokesman for the UN secretary general has told the BBC that now is the time “to put all politics aside” in delivering aid to Syria, adding it is working “as quickly as possible” to get aid to rebel-held areas
- The BBC’s Quentin Sommerville is in the rebel-controlled town of Harem and reports people are telling him it’s too late for aid and they’ve stopped recovery efforts
- The quake has been described as the “worst event in 100 years in this region” by the UN’s aid chief, who is the Turkish province of Kahramanmaras today. Elsewhere, the WHO’s Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus is reportedly visiting Aleppo
