US says it will continue to extend its 'full support' after 2 more quakes hit Türkiye

WASHINGTON

The US is “deeply concerned” after two more earthquakes jolted Türkiye’s southernmost province of Hatay, the White House said Monday, promising that it would continue to offer its full support.

We are deeply concerned by the news of earthquakes impacting areas already devastated in Turkiye and Syria. The U.S. will continue to extend our full support.

— Jake Sullivan (@JakeSullivan46) February 20, 2023

“We are deeply concerned by the news of earthquakes impacting areas already devastated in Türkiye and Syria,” National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan wrote on Twitter.

“The U.S. will continue to extend our full support,” he added.

Two earthquakes jolted Hatay province Monday, just two weeks after major quakes hit the region, the country’s disaster management agency said.

According to the Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD), one of the quakes took place around 8.04 p.m. local time (1704GMT) in Defne district with a magnitude of 6.4, while the other one, with a magnitude of 5.8, took place three minutes later, with the epicenter in Samandag district.

It came as magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 quakes centered in Kahramanmaras struck 10 other provinces – Hatay, Gaziantep, Malatya, Sanliurfa, Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Kilis, Osmaniye and Elazig – on Feb. 6, killing at least 41,000 people. ​​​​​​​