Turkey-Syria Earthquake: Why Hope Is 'Fading' in Rescue Efforts
(Photo : Photo by Burak Kara/Getty Images)
Over 21,500 people have died as a result of the earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria, and the chances of finding survivors among the rubble are getting slimmer.

The Syria Civil Defense, or White Helmets, have been rescuing people from the wreckage for over 90 hours in really tough conditions after Monday's catastrophic 7.8-magnitude earthquake in Turkey and Syria.

The rescue effort in northern Syria, which is controlled by the opposition, will go on until Friday, according to a volunteer group. The group noted there is a "fading" chance of finding survivors, according to CNN.

The rural regions of northern Syria, including Aleppo, and northeastern Syria, including Idlib, are among those affected.

So far, the death toll from the earthquakes in Turkey and Syria has risen to over 21,500. Turkey's government estimates that at least 18,342 people were killed, per Al Jazeera, making this tragedy more deadly than the country's terrible earthquake in 1999.

The Ukrainian State Emergency Service's Facebook page reports that a rescue team arrived in Antakya, Turkey, on Thursday and began searching and rescuing.

Pictures showed that the rescuers have established a tent camp and had begun searching for survivors beneath the wreckage in various locations in Hatay Province.

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USAID To Send Emergency Assistance

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has announced that it would provide $85 million in emergency aid to local partners in Turkey and Syria, as earlier reported by HNGN.

The funds will be used to facilitate the distribution of food, the provision of clean water, the provision of shelter, and the provision of emergency medical care.

Meanwhile, local partners would serve as channels for US assistance to Syria, as Washington has rejected Bashar al-Assad and sought responsibility for civil war atrocities, per DW.

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