In the morning of 6 February, a major earthquake of 7.8 magnitude hit northeastern Turkey. The first earthquake was followed by another major earthquake with a magnitude of 7.6. The two major earthquakes and the aftershocks that followed caused enormous damage in south-eastern Turkey and Syria. The earthquakes also struck Cyprus, with the island's second community counting dozens dead in the rubble of Turkey. The devastating earthquakes are having a multidimensional impact on Turkey and the Turkish Cypriot community, just before crucial elections in the neighbouring country.
