Middle East

World News

A rare glimpse of the earthquake aftermath in rebel-held Syria

5:09pm February 10, 2023

by Ruth Sherlock

NPR got a rare glimpse into the earthquake zone in rebel-held Syria, where it's been incredibly difficult to get aid in and news out. The disaster left devastation and people crying out for more aid.

USAID team leader on the rescue effort in Turkish cities hit hard by earthquake

4:57pm February 10, 2023

NPR's Ari Shapiro talks with Stephen Allen, who is leading a USAID team on the ground in Turkey as part of the search and rescue effort.

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After a decade of war, quake that struck northwest Syria made a bad situation worse

12:26pm February 10, 2023

NPR's A Martinez speaks with Kieren Barnes of Mercy Corps about the earthquake and relief efforts in northwestern Syria.

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Israeli emergency responders gather at the scene in Jerusalem.

World News

Israel says 2 people are dead after a man rammed his car into a group of people

10:40am February 10, 2023

by Daniel Estrin

Officials say a 6-year-old boy and a man in his 20s were killed when a Palestinian driver rammed a car into a group of people at a bus stop in a largely ultra-Orthodox Jewish settlement neighborhood.

Iran's supreme leader pledges to pardon thousands of jailed protesters

5:12am February 10, 2023

NPR's Leila Fadel Fadel talks to human rights lawyer Gissou Nia of the Atlantic Council, about how many protesters could be released when Iran pardons thousands of demonstrators.

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Foreign minister says Iranians can freely voice ideas despite thousands detained

5:26pm February 09, 2023

NPR's Mary Louise Kelly talks with Iran's foreign minister about free expression, Americans being held prisoner in his country and the future of the Iran nuclear deal.

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Destroyed buildings are seen from above in Antakya, southeastern Turkey, Thursday, Feb. 9, 2023.

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Syrian refugees starting over in Turkey are hit hard by the earthquake

5:10pm February 09, 2023

The majority of Syrian refugees live in southern Turkish cities near the Syrian border. NPR's Leila Fadel talks to Assalah Shikhani, a Syrian refugees in the Turkish city of Antakya, about the quake.

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In Turkey, the focus shifts from rescuing earthquake survivors to recovering bodies

4:49pm February 09, 2023

by Jason Beaubien

The vast destruction of the earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria is becoming clearer with each day. The scene in one flattened city that has a population over a million gives a glimpse at the scale.

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan tours the site of destroyed buildings during his visit to the city of Kahramanmaras, in southeast Turkey, on Wednesday, two days after the severe earthquake that hit the region.

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As the earthquake death toll soars, so does criticism of Turkey's government response

4:49pm February 09, 2023

by Rob Schmitz

Critics are laying into the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, accusing it of incompetence in its response to the massive quake and misplacing tax revenues meant for dealing with disasters.

People search through the rubble of collapsed buildings in the town of Jinderis, Aleppo province, Syria, Tuesday.

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Videos show extraordinary rescues in Syria in the earthquake's dire aftermath

3:59pm February 09, 2023

by Aya Batrawy

Hope is fading for finding survivors after Monday's devastating earthquake. But widely shared footage of volunteers pulling people alive from rubble in northwest Syria has lifted spirits.