Telethon Raises Over $5.5Bln In Donations For Victims Of Earthquakes In Turkey

Faizan Hashmi Published February 16, 2023 | 07:41 PM

The amount of donations collected at the national telethon for the victims of devastating earthquakes in Turkey has reached over $5.5 billion

ISTANBUL (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 16th February, 2023) The amount of donations collected at the national telethon for the victims of devastating earthquakes in Turkey has reached over $5.5 billion.

The telethon to raise money for earthquake victims in Turkey was held on Wednesday on over 200 Turkish broadcasters and 550 radio stations.

As of 11:30 p.m. Istanbul time (20:30 GMT) on Wednesday, the amount of money collected during the telethon amounted to 105.9 billion Turkish lire ($5.6 billion). The lion's share of this amount comes from donations from the country's four major banks, including the Bank of Turkey, which donated 30 billion lire.

At least $650 million were collected during the first hour of the telethon.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called the studio and once again pledged to provide housing during the year for those who lost their homes in the earthquakes. The president added that more than 136 million Turkish lire were collected through the efforts of cabinet members and other civil servants from their salaries.

Telecommunications companies, the Turkish Airlines air carrier, the Baykar drone-maker, a number of insurance companies, and construction holdings also pledged to donate significant amounts of money.

On February 6, parts of Turkey and Syria were hit by a series of powerful earthquakes and aftershocks. The death toll from the devastating earthquakes in Turkey exceeded 35,000.