BEIJING, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- A magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck southern Türkiye near the Syrian border early Monday, causing mass casualties in both countries.
Türkiye sits at the intersection of three major tectonic plates: African plate, Eurasian plate and Indian Ocean plate, and around 42 percent of its territory is situated in a seismically active region, which is why the country is so prone to earthquakes.
Here's a look at the powerful earthquakes that hit Türkiye in recent years:
-- Oct. 30, 2020: A magnitude 6.6 earthquake hit the Aegean Sea off Türkiye's western province of Izmir, killing 116 people and injuring 994 others.
-- Jan. 24, 2020: At least 20 people were killed and more than 1,000 injured in a magnitude 6.8 earthquake in Türkiye's eastern province of Elazig.
-- Sept. 26, 2019: A 5.8 magnitude earthquake hit Türkiye's largest city Istanbul, injuring 34 people and damaging 474 buildings.
-- Nov. 9, 2011: A magnitude 5.6 earthquake shook Van province in eastern Türkiye, causing 40 deaths, 30 injuries and damages to 25 buildings as of Nov. 13.
-- Oct. 23, 2011: A magnitude 7.2 earthquake hit Van province in eastern Türkiye, killing more than 600 people, injuring over 4,000 others and causing varying degrees of damages to around 6,000 buildings.
-- March 8, 2010: A magnitude 6.0 earthquake struck Elazig province in eastern Türkiye, killing 41 people.
-- May 1, 2003: A magnitude 6.4 earthquake hit Türkiye's eastern province of Bingol, killing 176 people, injuring more than 600 and damaging nearly 1,200 buildings.
-- Aug. 17, 1999: A magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck central and western Türkiye. On Nov. 12, a magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck western Türkiye. The two earthquakes killed around 18,000 people, injured 43,000 others, left 600,000 people homeless and caused economic damage of 20 billion U.S. dollars. ■
