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PakisTan desPaTches Rescue TeaM as deaTh Toll in TuRkiye-syRia quake cRosses 5,200 g
pm says pakistan would extend all possible support to turkiye in testing times
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pak army, rescue 1122 teams reach for relief opration
ISLAMABAD
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PM Relief Fund for Turkiye’s earthquake victims established
Staff RepoRt
Verwhelmed rescuers struggled to save people trapped under the rubble as the death toll from a devastating earthquake in turkiye and syria surpassed 5,200 on tuesday, with despair mounting and the scale of the disaster hampering relief efforts. turkish president tayyip erdogan on tuesday declared a state of emergency in 10 provinces devastated by two earthquakes that killed more than 5,200 people and left a trail of destruction across a wide area of southern turkiye and neighbouring syria. an official 51-member pakistani rescue team was also set to touchdown in istanbul today, federal minister saad rafiq said on twitter. a relief fund for the earthquake victims of turkiye was formally established under the direction of prime minister shehbaz sharif on tuesday. pm shehbaz is set to depart for turkiye to express solidarity today. a notification in this regard was issued by the office of the controller general of accounts. the fund “g-12166” was created under the title “pm’s relief fund for turkiye earthquake victims’. earlier, during a federal cabinet meeting, the prime minister had announced the establishment of the relevant relief fund for the quake affected people of turkiye, pm office media wing said in a press release. the prime minister appealed to the philanthropists, institutions and general public to make generous donations to the newly established account under ‘pm relief fund for turkiye earthquake Victims”. the prime minister observed that a 7.9 magnitude quake had brought huge destruction in the brotherly country of turkiye in which thousands of people lost their lives, the press release said. turkiye had always supported the national interests of pakistan and its people in difficulties with generous and sincere help. during the 2005 quake, and during 2010 and 2022 floods devastation, turkiye had supported pakistan with generosity. expressing solidarity with the people of turkiye, the prime minister further said that in this difficult situation, the government and people of pakistan would extend all possible support to their turkish brothers and sisters. he said helping the people of turkiye was also their religious duty. in the turkish city of antakya near the syrian border, where 10-storey buildings had crumbled onto
ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt
the streets, reuters journalists saw rescue work being conducted on one out of dozens of mounds of rubble. the temperature was close to freezing as the rain came down and there was no electricity or fuel in the city. the magnitude 7.8 quake hit turkiye and neighbouring syria early on monday, toppling thousands of buildings including many apartment blocks, wrecking hospitals, and leaving thousands of people injured or homeless. in turkiye, the death toll climbed to 3,381 people, turkiye’s disaster and emergency management authority (afad) said. the death toll in syria, already devastated by more than 11 years of war, stands at more than 1,500, according to the syrian government and a rescue service in the insurgent-held northwest. rescuers in turkey and syria braved frigid weather, aftershocks and collapsing buildings tuesday, as they dug for survivors buried by an earthquake that killed more than 5,000 people. disaster agencies said several thousand buildings were flattened in cities across a vast border region — pouring misery on an area already plagued by war, insurgency, refugee crises and a recent cholera outbreak. through the night, survivors used their bare
hands to pick over the twisted ruins of multi-storey apartment blocks — trying to save family, friends and anyone else sleeping inside when the first massive 7.8-magnitude quake struck early monday. “where is my mum?” asked a distraught seven-year-old girl who was pulled — her face, hair and pyjamas covered in dust — from a collapsed building in hatay, on the turkish side of the border. the sense of disbelief was widespread, as residents struggled to comprehend the scale of the disaster. some of the heaviest devastation occurred near the quake’s epicentre between kahramanmaras and gaziantep, a city of two million where entire blocks now lie in ruins under gathering snow. as residents tried to clear a mountain of masonry, plasterboard and furniture that had been a multi-story building, another collapsed nearby — sending crowds screaming and clamouring for safety. with aftershocks rattling the area, many terrified and exhausted survivors spent the night outdoors, too afraid to go home. ‘Can’t go home’: some huddled under bus shelters, some wrapped themselves in plastic to repel the freezing rain and others burned debris to keep warm. mustafa koyuncu packed his wife and their five children into their parked car.
a relief fund for the earthquake victims of turkiye was formally established under the direction of prime minister muhammad shehbaz sharif on tuesday. a notification in this regard was issued by the office of the controller general of accounts. the fund “g-12166” was created under the title “pm’s relief fund for turkiye earthquake victims’. earlier, during a federal cabinet meeting, the prime minister had announced the establishment of the relevant relief fund for the quake affected people of turkiye, pm office media wing said in a press release. the prime minister appealed to the philanthropists, institutions and general public to make generous donations to the newly established account under ‘pm relief fund for turkiye earthquake Victims”. the prime minister observed that a 7.8 magnitude quake had brought huge destruction in the brotherly country of turkiye in which thousands of people lost their lives, the press release said. turkiye had always supported the national interests of pakistan and its people in difficulties with generous and sincere help. during the 2005 quake, and during 2010 and 2022 floods devastation, turkiye had supported pakistan with generosity. expressing solidarity with the people of turkiye, the prime minister further said that in this difficult situation, the government and people of pakistan would extend all possible support to their turkish brothers and sisters. he said helping the people of turkiye was also their religious duty. “we can’t go home,” the 55-year-old told afp. “everyone is afraid.” turkey put the latest death toll at 3,419 in that country alone — bringing the confirmed tally in both turkey and syria to 5,021. there are fears that the toll will rise inexorably, with world health organisation (who) officials estimating up to 20,000 may have died.
DETAILS STORY ON PAGE 05
Rupee-denominated Naya Pakistan Certificates’ rates of return increased ISLAMABAD Staff RepoRt
the government on tuesday revised the rates of return for rupee denominated islamic naya pakistan certificates (npc) of different maturities. according to a notification issued by the finance division, the rate of return for rupee denominated npcs with a maturity of three months has been revised from 9.5% up to 15% while the six-month return has been raised from 10% to 15%. the one-year return has been revised up from 10.5% to 15.5%, while the three- and five-year returns have been increased from 10.75% to 14% and 11% to 13.5% respectively. last month, the government increased the
rate of return for us-dollar denominated npcs, too. three-month certificates were raised from 5.5% to 7% while the six-month return was raised from 6% to 7.2%. the one-year return had been revised up from 6.5% to 7.5% while three- and five-year returns were increased to 8% from the previous rates of 6.75% and 7% respectively. similarly, the rates for pound-denominated npcs had also been revised up to 5.5% for a maturity period of three months, 6% for six months, 7% for one year and 7.5% each for a period of three and five years respectively. for euro-denominated npcs, the government had revised the rates of returns to 4% for a maturity period of three months, 4.5% for six months, 5% for one year and 6.5% each for a period of three and five years.