MHP's Bahçeli rebukes earthquake survivors in Maraş

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Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli rebuked earthquake survivors in Elbistan, Maraş, where the second powerful earthquake on February 6 occurred.

When some of the citizens surrounding him tried to explain their problems, Bahçeli said, "You don't have the right to sabotage Mr. President and the visit."

"There will be silence!" he said, and then instructed his bodyguards to disperse the crowd.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, several ministers and Bahçeli visited the city together.

A citizen was heard saying, "The country is finished. The people are collapsing. We are striving against that. We love our country."

Mahir Ünal, an MP with the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) whose hometown is Elbistan, told the crowd, "Don't do this to Elbistan."

The crowd responded by chanting, "Elbistan should be a province."

On February 6, two earthquakes with a magnitude of 7.7 and 7.6 struck the southern city of Maraş. The first quake in the Pazarcık district at 4.17 a.m. was followed by the second one in Elbistan about nine hours later.

The quakes affected 11 cities in Türkiye's south and southeast, as well as Syria's northern parts.

The official death toll from the quakes stands at over 45,000 and is expected to increase further, as over 160,000 buildings were destroyed or severely damaged, according to government figures.

Nearly two million people have been displaced due to the earthquakes.
(AEK/VK)