Death toll from Turkey, Syria earthquake tops 47,000
Ankara (AP): The death toll from the massive earthquake that hit parts of Turkey and Syria on February 6 continues to rise as more bodies are retrieved from the rubble of demolished buildings.
A magnitude 6.4 earthquake that struck the already battered province of Hatay this week damaged or demolished more buildings, compounding the devastation.
Here's a look at the key developments on Thursday from the aftermath of the earthquake.
DEATH TOLL TOPS 47,000
Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu has raised the number of fatalities in Turkey from the magnitude 7.8 earthquake to 43,556.
The combined death toll in Turkey and Syria now stands at 47,244.
In an interview with state broadcaster TRT late on Wednesday, Soylu said teams were sifting through two buildings in hard-hit Hatay province in search of further bodies. Search operations elsewhere have come to an end, he said.
Meanwhile, at least 164,000 buildings have either collapsed or are so damaged that they need to be demolished, said Murat Kurum, Turkey's minister for the environment and urbanisation.
SYRIANS SHELTER IN TENTS AND CARS
The local civil defence in northwestern Syria, known locally as The White Helmets, said on Thursday that thousands of children and tens of thousands of families have taken shelter in cars and tents "fearing they would face a repeat of the earthquake".
In government-held Syria, a first plane from Bahrain loaded with aid landed in Damascus. The Gulf monarchy is among many Arab countries that in recent years have tried to thaw relations with President Bashar Assad, after shunning him in 2011 for his brutal crackdown on protesters.
Saudi Arabia and Egypt, two key US allies in the region, have also delivered aid.
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Sooryavanshi's century in vain as SRH beat RR by 5 wickets
Jaipur (PTI): Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's century went in vain as Sunrisers Hyderabad beat Rajasthan Royals by five wickets in their IPL match here on Saturday.
Sooryavanshi hammered his second hundred in the IPL — a 37-ball 103 — as Rajasthan Royals put on board a strong 228 for six after they were put in to bat first.
Sooryavanshi got plenty of support from Dhruv Jurel, who made a 35-ball 51 and, helped the teenager milk 112 runs for the second wicket. In the death overs, Donovan Ferreira (33) played some big shots as RR went past the 200-run mark.
But, SRH chased down the target of 229 with nine balls to spare, with Ishan Kishan top-scoring with a 74 off 31 balls. Abhishek Sharma chipped in with 57 off 29 deliveries as SRH reached 229 for 5 in 18.3 overs.
Brief Scores:
Rajasthan Royals: 228/6 in 20 overs (Vaibhav Sooryavanshi 103, Dhruv Jurel 51; Pat Cummins 1/27, Eshan Malinga 2/38).
Sunrisers Hydearabad: 229 for 5 in 18.3 overs (Ishan Kishan 74, Abhishek Sharma 57; Jofra Archer 2/34, Brijesh Sharma 2/44).
