Rescuers from Turkey and Syria, and increasingly from around the world as international assistance arrives, have continued to search the rubble for survivors early Wednesday after major earthquakes in Turkey and Syria. Officials say the number of dead tallied in the two countries so far has climbed past 11,000, with fears that this figure could double. Turkey's Disaster Management Authority (AFAD) said on Wednesday that the death toll there had passed 8,500. The combined death toll from figures provided by Syrian authorities operating in government-controlled and insurgent-held areas has meanwhile topped 2,600. The White Helmets rescue team, which is coordinating emergency efforts in rebel-held areas, said on Twitter the toll had risen to more than 1,400 deaths and more than 2,600 injured. Overnight, the Syrian health minister said the number of dead in government-held parts of the country rose to 1,250, the state-run al-Ikhbariya news outlet reported on its Telegram feed. The number of wounded was 2,054, he said.
All the responsible authorities continue to warn that the figures could continue to rise and that the chances of finding survivors under the rubble is diminishing as time passes. The first 7.8 magnitude quake on Monday occurred at 04:17 a.m. local time (0117 GMT) at a depth of about 18 kilometers (11 miles), the US Geological Survey said. It hit near the Turkish city of Gaziantep, which has a population of around 2 million. It was followed by a slightly smaller 7.5 magnitude tremor and many aftershocks. Millions of people who have fled the civil war in Syria and other conflicts live in the border region beside the usual inhabitants.
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