– The concrete has turned to sand, says one man to the New York Times newspaper. He stands and looks out over tons of collapsed and completely destroyed buildings. – It was built far too quickly, says the man, who wishes to remain anonymous. After Turkey and Syria were hit by a powerful 7.8 magnitude earthquake, at least 6,000 buildings collapsed. So far, 28,000 people have been confirmed dead, after what is the most powerful earthquake in the area since 1939. Want to investigate “earthquake crime” On Saturday, Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay issued an arrest warrant for 113 people. Now over a hundred people will be in custody, writes the newspaper. Many of them will be property developers and construction managers. The Turkish Ministry of Justice has called on local authorities in ten provinces to launch investigations into what they call “earthquake crime”. Several hundred white tents erected on a football field in the city of Gaziantep in Turkey. Photo: IRAKLI GEDENIDZE / Reuters Minister of Justice in the country, Bekir Bozdag, said earlier this week that everyone who has any form of guilt must be held accountable. That’s what the Financial Times writes. Experts have suggested that the extent of the destruction can be partly explained by poor enforcement of building regulations. The quakes leveled over 6,000 buildings. It is highly provocative in a country where the authorities have promised fines and improvements to poorly constructed buildings for many, many years. Arrested at the airport On Friday, a property developer was arrested at the airport in Istanbul. He was then on his way to a flight to Montenegro. The developer was behind a 12-storey apartment building, with 250 apartments, which was completely destroyed during the earthquake. It is uncertain how many people died when the building collapsed, but the New York Times estimated that dozens lost their lives. The man said via his lawyer that he had followed regulations and rules during the construction process. The lawyer also claimed that the reason why the man was arrested was to curb the public discontent that has arisen in the time since the earthquake. Erdogan promises penance and recovery President Recep Erdogan has faced massive criticism in the time since the earthquake. The construction of new buildings has been a cornerstone of the president’s policy in recent years. Political opponents have for years criticized the buildings for not being earthquake-proof. READ ALSO: Erdogan acknowledges problems with aid work On Saturday, the president made a statement in which he promised to build several thousand safe buildings in the coming year. – We shall not leave anyone, alive or dead, under the collapsed building masses. When everyone has been dug out and the destruction cleared away, we will build anew, Erdogan said. Around 14,000 rescue workers are working frantically to find the people who are still buried under wood, concrete and brick.
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