European Union to deploy 1,150 rescuers to quake-hit regions of Türkiye

Under the EU's emergency response mechanism, 27 rescue teams with over 1,150 personnel have been sent to Türkiye in the wake of Monday's powerful quakes, the EU commissioner for crisis management said.

"So far, we've mobilized 27 search and rescue and medical teams from 19 European countries via the EU Civil Protection Mechanism to help Türkiye after the earthquake," Janez Lenarcic wrote on Twitter on Tuesday. Türkiye is also a member of the mechanism.

The EU member states of Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and Spain all sent teams, along with Montenegro and Albania.

In total, 1,150 personnel and 70 rescue dogs were sent, Lenarcic added.

Switzerland, which is not a member of the bloc, also sent aid to Türkiye, with its Foreign Ministry tweeting that Swiss Rescue took off from Zurich on Monday night and was "about to arrive in and around" Türkiye to assist rescue workers and "help the injured and missing, as well as their families."

Swiss rescue dog service REDOG, said on Monday that it was sending 22 rescuers with 14 dogs to Türkiye. In addition, 80 search and rescue personnel, including army disaster experts, would be sent to Türkiye, according to the government.

At least 3,432 people were killed and 21,103 others injured in 10 provinces of Türkiye after two strong earthquakes on Monday jolted the southern part of the country, an official from Türkiye's disaster agency said Tuesday.

The earthquakes were also felt in several neighboring countries in the region, including Lebanon and Syria.