ANKARA
Messages of support continued to pour in Tuesday from world leaders after a devasting series of earthquakes Monday struck Türkiye.
Crown Prince of Kuwait Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah expressed sympathy for those who were killed and wished recovery to the injured, Türkiye’s Communications Directorate said in a statement.
Separately, Felix Tshisekedi, president of the Democratic Republic of the Congo also conveyed condolences to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Oman Sultan Haitham bin Tariq, Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa and El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele are other leaders who expressed condolences.
Erdogan had a telephone call Tuesday with Iranian President Ibrahim Raisi.
The tremors have caused widespread damage and killed at least 4,544 people in the south and southeast.
“We talked to 18 heads of state and government who called us. I would like to thank all our friends, all heads of state and government, who called us, sent messages and made statements in order to convey their support and help offer in this difficult day of our country,” said Turkish President Erdogan.
He added that the support of the international community is “valuable” to Türkiye.
Erdogan later spoke to Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, bringing the number of phone calls to 19.
Sisi conveyed condolences to Erdogan, according to a statement by Türkiye’s Communications Directorate.
A 7.7-magnitude tremor struck the Pazarcik district of Kahramanmaras province early Monday. Nine hours later, a 7.6-magnitude quake, centered in Kahramanmaras’s Elbistan district, rocked the region, affecting several provinces, including Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye, and Sanliurfa.
The earthquake was also felt in countries in the region, including Lebanon and Syria.
