At least 350 people have been killed and many more injured after a reported 7.8 magnitude earthquake, and several aftershocks, caused a combined widespread destruction in Turkey and Syria on Monday morning.
The combined death toll in Turkey and Syria climbs steeply, as it rises to 568.
This has risen by around 200 in just over 30 minutes.
The fact the quake hit in the early hours, while people were asleep, has led to more casualties than had it been during the daytime.
Just hours ago Sky News reported that the death toll in Syria was 237 – and that is just in government-held areas.
According to Turkish vice president, Fuat Oktay, the country’s death toll was now 284, with 2,323 people injured.
He said 70 people were killed in the province of Kahramanmaras, where the quake epicentre was located, along with 20 people in Osmaniye, 18 in Sanliurfa, 14 in Diyarbakir and 13 in Adiyaman.
