Türkei: Unruhen im Erdbebengebiet

Fast 30.000 Tote sind in Folge des Erdbebens in der Türkei und Syrien inzwischen zu beklagen und Experten gehen davon aus, dass die Zahl in den nächsten Tagen noch dramatisch ansteigen wird, da kaum mehr Hoffnung die Verschüttete besteht. Derweil sind in der besonders betroffenen türkischen Provinz Hatay Unruhen ausgebrochen.

Die BBC meldet dazu:

German rescuers and the Austrian army paused search operations on Saturday, citing clashes between unnamed groups. (...)

nearly 50 people have been arrested for looting, with several guns seized, local media reported.

Turkey's president said he would use emergency powers to punish anyone breaking the law.

An Austrian army spokesperson said early on Saturday that clashes between unidentified groups in the Hatay province had left dozens of personnel from the Austrian Forces Disaster Relief Unit seeking shelter in a base camp with other international organisations.

"There is increasing aggression between factions in Turkey," Lieutenant Colonel Pierre Kugelweis said in a statement. "The chances of saving a life bears no reasonable relation to the safety risk."

Hours after Austria paused its rescue efforts, the country's ministry of defence said that the Turkish army had stepped in to offer protection, allowing the rescue operations to resume.

The German branch of the search and rescue group ISAR and Germany's Federal Agency for Technical Relief (TSW) also suspended operations, citing security concerns.

"There are more and more reports of clashes between different factions, shots have also been fired," said ISAR spokesperson Stefan Heine.

Steven Bayer, operations manager of Isar, said he expected security to worsen as food, water, and hope become more scarce.

"We are watching the security situation very closely as it develops," he said.

German rescue teams said they would resume work as soon as Turkish authorities deem the situation safe, Reuters news agency reported.