Before And After: How The Earthquake Hit Historical Landmarks In Turkey And Syria
A boy stands on rubble in the aftermath of an earthquake near Aleppo's ancient citadel, in the old city of Aleppo, Syria February 7, 2023.A deadly earthquake hit Turkey and Syria on Monday, leaving thousands dead and whole landscapes completely transformed.
More than 5,200 people were killed by the first quake of 7.8 magnitude and a secondary quake of 7.5 magnitude (along with the 285 subsequent aftershocks).
More than 36 hours later, the horrifying death toll is continuing to rise.
Hundreds are still thought to be trapped under the rubble as an international humanitarian effort is underway to rescue as many people as possible.
But, harsh weather conditions and political turmoil in Syria continue to hamper relief efforts.
Historic buildings in both countries, some of which are ancient, have been dramatically hit, meaning thousands of years of architecture were undone in a matter of seconds.
Here’s a look at just how much devastation this has caused across the region, through before and after pictures.
Before
The Gaziantep Citadel (Turkey) was built in the 12th and 13th centuries on top of an earlier Byzantine fortress built in the 6th century. It is a major tourist site, having survived waves of invasion and conquest over thousands of years.
Gaziantep is 80km from the earthquake’s epicentre in Kahramanmaras.
Gaziantep Citadel before the earthquake, pictured in November 2022After
Here’s what it looked like after the quake – while much of it was levelled out, there is still a large portion of the structure standing.
Before
The Yeni Cami – meaning New Mosque – in Malatya, Turkey, had its foundations laid in 1597 although it was not completed until 1663. It was part of the ottoman imperial empire, and only restored last year.
It was previously destroyed in the “Great Earthquake” of 1894 too, and again in 1964.
Before the earthquakeAfter
Yeni Cami after the earthquake, with walls collapsing.
Before
The historic citadel on the outskirts of the old city in Aleppo, Syria, began construction between the 12th and 13th centuries. It includes a 22-metre moat, and a bridge.
After
Aleppo’s ancient citadel began to crumble following the deadly earthquake.
