Retired Nigerian footballers Austin Okocha and Mikel Obi have joined to convey condolences to all those affected by the terrible earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria early on Monday. These efforts come as Turkey receives extensive relief assistance and support.
The strongest earthquake to strike Turkey in more than a century struck the country on Monday with a magnitude of 7.8.
The Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoan, stated the number of confirmed fatalities in Turkey has risen to 9,057 as of the time of writing while speaking in Hatay province, which is near to the epicenter of the earthquakes, according to Reuters.
At least 11,719 people have died in the catastrophe, while many more are either missing or injured or buried beneath the debris of destroyed houses.
Turkish goalkeeper Ahmet Eyup Turkaslan was among the dead, and ex-Newcastle winger Christian Atsu is still missing as a result of the earthquake.
Former Chelsea midfielder Mikel, who finished his career playing in Turkey, expressed his sympathy to the quake victims on his Instagram page: “My heart breaks seeing videos of the earthquake in Turkey yesterday.
“I am sending my sincere condolences to the people who have lost their loved ones to this very unfortunate incident. May God grant you all the fortitude to bear the irreplaceable loss.
Okocha also wrote, “My thoughts and prayers are with the entire people of Turkey. My deepest condolence to the families that have lost their loved ones.”
