Death toll reaches 44,000 in Syria-Turkey earthquake

Search and rescue operations continue for the twelfth consecutive day in order to find any survivors who remain under the rubble of the devastating earthquake that hit areas in southern Turkey and northern Syria on Feb. 6.

The death toll from the earthquake rose to nearly 44,000 on Friday, as hopes of finding survivors faded.

The number of deaths recorded in Syria has so far reached 5,800, a number that has barely seen any increase in the past days.

Turkey's relief agency AFAD stated that the death toll from the earthquake in the south of the country rose to 38,044, while the number of those injured climbed to 108,068.

On Feb. 6, a strong earthquake struck southern Turkey and northern Syria, the first measuring 7.7 degrees, and the second measuring 7.6 degrees, followed by thousands of violent aftershocks, which caused a large number of casualties.