At least 20 prisoners, suspected of belonging to the Islamic State (IS) terrorist organization, have escaped from a prison in northwestern Syria after the February 6 earthquake.
The TASS news agency quoted sources as saying: “About 20 prisoners, presumably ISIS members, have escaped.”
According to the source, about 2,000 people are being held at a prison near the city of Raju near the Turkish border, of which 1,300 are likely IS fighters. After a strong earthquake on February 6 damaged several buildings, inmates rebelled and took over part of the prison. The Syrian authorities are continuing to investigate the incident.
Earlier, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck at 4:17 a.m. on February 6 (local time), with an epicenter at a depth of about 18km near the Turkish city of Gaziantep, about 60km from the Syrian border.
The toll of loss of life and property has increased rapidly, as rescuers try their best to locate survivors trapped under the rubble of thousands of damaged buildings. collapse.
The World Health Organization (WHO) warned that the death toll from the earthquake disaster in southeastern Turkey could reach 8,000.