Turkey and Syria rocked again by 6.3 magnitude earthquake

Strong quake further damaged buildings in central Antakya; also felt in Egypt and Lebanon

ANTAKYA:

A magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck the Turkey-Syria border region late on Monday, setting off panic and damaging buildings in Turkey's Antakya city two weeks after the country's worst earthquake in modern history left tens of thousands dead.

Two Reuters witnesses reported a strong quake and further damage to buildings in central Antakya, where it was centred. It was also felt in Egypt and Lebanon, Reuters reporters said.

The European Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) said the tremor struck at a depth of 2km (1.2 miles).

This is the moment a magnitude 6.4 earthquake at a depth of 16.7 km hit Türkiye’s southern Hatay province two weeks after major #TurkiyeQuakes in the region pic.twitter.com/P82aYUc4it

— TRT World (@trtworld) February 20, 2023

Other witnesses said Turkish rescue teams were running around after the latest quake, checking people were unharmed.

Muna Al Omar, a resident, said she was in a tent in a park in central Antakya when the earthquake hit.

Also read: Survivors dug out of rubble 12 days after Turkey quake

"I thought the earth was going to split open under my feet," she said, crying as she held her 7-year-old son in her arms.

"Is there going to be another aftershock?" she asked.

The two larger earthquakes that hit on Feb 6, which also rocked neighbouring Syria, left more than a million homeless and killed far more than the latest official tally of 46,000 people in both countries.