(Photo: VNA)

The Turkish leader affirmed that the decision to declare a state of emergency was to create the most favorable conditions for rescue work and recovery of the consequences. A series of emergency measures will be implemented to quickly deliver humanitarian aid and timely financial support to the affected people and localities.

According to the latest report, as of 8pm Tuesday night (UTC time), the total number of victims of earthquake disasters in Turkey and Syria has reached more than 7,300 people, including more than 5,400 in Turkey and more than 1,870 in Syria. Authorities fear the death toll will continue to rise rapidly. The World Health Organization (WHO) says that the death toll in earthquakes in Turkey and Syria could reach 20,000.

Currently, the rescue work is still urgently underway, but facing many difficulties due to the harsh cold weather and heavy rain. The Turkish government said it deployed more than 50,000 relief workers to the affected area and set aside a budget of 5.3 billion USD to deal with the aftermath of the earthquake.

The European Union and many other countries have sent rescue and relief units to Turkey upon receiving a request for help from Ankara.