New York City mayor voices support for quake-hit Türkiye

New York City Mayor Eric Adams expressed support Friday for Türkiye in the wake of two powerful earthquakes that killed thousands of people.

Adams noted that Türkiye hosts Syrian refugees fleeing persecution during a visit to a Turkish mosque in Brooklyn where humanitarian donations are being collected for victims of the earthquakes that were centered in Kahramanmaraş in southern Türkiye.

"You have always been there for other countries and we want to be here," Adams told reporters following Friday prayers. "We are all feeling the pain that Turkiye is going through right now."

Adams was welcomed by the Consul General of Turkey in New York, Reyhan Özgür, who thanked the Turkish-American community for their assistance in helping quake victims.

Özgür said the consulate has shipped more than 50 tons of humanitarian aid material to Türkiye and more than 200 tons of humanitarian assistance will be shipped from New Jersey.

At least 20,213 people were killed and 80,052 others injured by two strong earthquakes that jolted southern Türkiye on Monday, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said Friday.

The 7.7- and 7.6-magnitude earthquakes, centered in the Kahramanmaraş province, affected more than 13 million people across 10 provinces, also including Adana, Adıyaman, Diyarbakır, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye and Şanlıurfa.