Moment of silence and homage: First anniversary of February 6 earthquakes

Türkiye remembers the victims of the February 6, 2023 earthquakes that hit the southern part of the country, killing a total of 53,537 people and injuring more than 107,000 others.

Magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 quakes struck 11 Turkish provinces – Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Elazig, Hatay, Gaziantep, Kahramanmaras, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye and Sanliurfa.

More than 14 million people in Türkiye were affected by the quakes, as well as many others in Syria.

People across the country, including the quake-hit provinces, assembled for commemoration ceremonies, honoring the memory of those who perished in the disaster.

A moment of silence and homage was held to remember the victims of the 'Disaster of the Century' at 0417 AM local time, the moment the tremor struck.

In Antakya, people throw flowers in the Orontes River, known as the Asi River in Türkiye, which flows through the city.

'Disaster of the Century'

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan promised on Tuesday to heal the wounds of the victims of the earthquakes.

"The pain of the lives we lost in the Kahramanmaras-centered earthquakes that we experienced a year ago continues to burn our hearts as fresh as the first day," Erdogan said on X.

Stressing that Türkiye banded together against the 'Disaster of the Century,’ he said: "Such great disasters and great sufferings are also turning points where the strength of the unity, solidarity and brotherhood of nations is tested."

Erdogan also said that the government is working hard to keep its promises to the nation, adding: "We will continue these efforts until we build and revitalize our cities."

Later Tuesday, he is scheduled to attend a key handover ceremony in Kahramanmaras to rehouse thousands of survivors.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan also commemorated Tuesday the anniversary of quakes, and those who lost their lives.

"We will continue to stand by our affected citizens," he wrote on X, thanking all friendly countries who stood by Türkiye in the difficult times.

Turkish Communications Director Fahrettin Altun reminded on Tuesday that quakes left an indescribable pain in Turkish people's hearts and added that he commemorates all 53,537 lives lost.

"May God protect our honourable nation & our beautiful country from all kinds of disasters and dangers," he wrote on X.

New houses built for erathquake victims

Türkiye's Communications Directorate organised a tour to the earthquake-affected area in Adiyaman for 45 national and international journalists.

Governor Osman Varol provided information about the ongoing efforts in the city to the group of 33 foreign and 12 Turkish journalists.

Adiyaman was one of the 11 southern Turkish provinces struck by the devastating February 6 earthquakes.

"We lost 8,387 of our citizens in Adiyaman, and I extend my condolences to them. When we look at the building stock of our province, we see that the total number of buildings is 115,067, and the number of independent buildings is 269,116 within these buildings."

"In the earthquakes, 33,112 buildings in the city were determined as 'collapsed,' 'urgently to be demolished,' 'severely damaged,' and 'moderately damaged,'" he said.

Italian journalist Giuseppe Didonna told Anadolu Agency that they visited the houses constructed for the earthquake victims.

Didonna said: "Hopefully, everyone will return to their normal lives as soon as possible. A pretty quick job has been done."

"I came to the Indere region in September before; there was only the foundation. Now, the buildings are going up fast, and I am amazed; it's going very fast," he said.

He added: "I congratulate those who contributed. Inside, there is every facility to meet the needs of the people."