realms and territories, head of the commonwealth, defender of the faith. this is newsday on the bbc. the earthquakes in syria have killed more than 10,000 people it s fitted are still trapped. meanwhile, in ukraine, there s been fierce fighting around the eastern city of bakhmut. russian forces are trying to encircle the city and there is street to street fighting in some areas. russia s president putin is pushing hard for a victory in bakhmut before the first anniversary of the invasion in a few weeks time and before ukraine takes delivery of tanks from western allies. from eastern ukraine, our senior international correspondent orla guerin reports.
buildings to collapse. turkish ambassador buildings to collapse. turkish ambassador to buildings to collapse. turkish ambassador to singapore, i buildings to collapse. turkish i ambassador to singapore, thank you forjoining us on the programme. there is a lot of aid efforts taking place right now. to remind you if you are looking to contribute to aid efforts in turkey and syria there are many ways you could do that including two charities and ngos. we ve been talking about turkey but the situation in northern syria was desperate even before the earthquake struck the region is home to millions of refugees displaced by years of civil war. some emergency aid has been flown in from iran and the gulf states but the syrian government has also asked the european union for help. the group of volunteers known as the white helmets are leading the rescue efforts. our international editor jeremy bowen reports. something to celebrate at last in a place without much good news. a family of six wa
the rescuers, a group called the white helmets that the uk helps to fund, are experts. they ve been digging out survivors of the assad regime s air strikes for much of syria s long war. the geological faults that brought down these buildings cut right across the front lines and zones of influence that have devastated syria since 2011. this is aleppo, syria s biggest city, back in regime hands since the rebels here were defeated in 2016. now syria has a huge natural disaster on the back of the man made catastrophe that broke the country. in aleppo hospital, every bed has its own tragedy. only three members of this man s family survived when their home collapsed. 13 of them were killed. they were, he says my father, my mother, my brother, his wife, and their four children.
welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to viewers in the uk and around the world. we begin in turkey and syria, where more than twelve thousand people are now known to have died in the earthquakes which devastated the region just two days ago. rescue workers continue their search for survivors, but hope is beginning to fade. in turkey, there s growing anger at the speed of the rescue effort with many complaining that they ve had no help, trying to pull people from the rubble. while in syria, the state media is reporting that some three hundred thousand people have been forced to leave their homes. more from syria shortly, but first let s hear from our middle east correspondent anna foster who was among the first journalists to reach the epicentre zone she sent this report from the turkish city of karaman marash. the devastating power of the earth, seen from the air. swathes of this city lie in ruins buildings, homes, lives have been destroyed.
an earthquake tests any nation s resilience. war has taught a generation of syrians that they have to fend for themselves. in idlib province, the white helmets rescued another child, a boy. people do their best. broader aid efforts, let alone rebuilding, will need a miracle to overcome the blight, hatred, and distrust of a generation of war. jeremy bowen, bbc news. leaders from around the world have responded to monday s devastating earthquake in turkey and syria with pledges of support. among the nations contributing to the global relief effort, australia has promised $10 million to the aid operation, while new zealand s prime minister chris hipkins has committed $1.5 million to assist in the humanitarian response. the announcements came in the wake of an appeal from the un