Ghanaian footballer Christian Atsu has been rescued from the rubble of the earthquake that killed and injured thousands in Turkey and neighbouring Syria, Ghana's Football Association confirmed on Tuesday.

Former Newcastle midfielder Atsu, 31, joined Turkish Super Lig side Hatayspor in September, based in the southern province of Hatay near the epicentre of Monday's massive quake.

"Good news! We've received some positive news that Christian Atsu has been successfully rescued from the rubble of the collapsed building and is receiving treatment," Ghana's football body said on Twitter.

"Let's continue to pray for Christian," it added.

Ghana's ambassador to Turkey Francisca Ashietey-Odunton, speaking to Accra-based Asaase Radio, had earlier said that Atsu "has been found," quoting the head of the Ghana association.

The statements did not say when Atsu was extracted from the debris, and gave no details about his condition.

Atsu spent five seasons at Newcastle after an initial campaign on loan playing over 100 games before leaving for Saudi Arabia in 2021.

He won the last of his 60 Ghana national caps in September 2019.

Dozens of nations have offered aid since the 7.8-magnitude quake struck early on Monday as people were sleeping. Freezing weather has hampered emergency efforts.

Multi-storey apartment buildings full of residents were among the more than 5,600 structures reduced to rubble in Turkey, while Syria announced dozens of collapses.

 

 

Turkey's Iskenderun port on fire after quake

Hatay, TurkeyTURKEYSYRIAQUAKEPORT

Dozens of cargo containers were on fire for the second day running on Tuesday in Turkey's quake-hit southern port city of Iskenderun, local TV images showed.

The blaze at the Iskenderun international port has raged since 5:00 pm (1400 GMT) Monday, when one of its containers toppled over from aftershocks following the deadly 7.8-magnitude quake, Hurriyet daily reported.

Images broadcast by the NTV news channel showed thick black plumes of smoke billowing from the containers.

Another video showed unsuccessful attempts to put the fire out on Monday night.

In one image, the column of smoke resembles a raging tornado while in another, hundreds of brightly coloured containers have fallen over.

Turkish authorities have sent a coast guard ship to help put out the fire at the port in Hatay province.

Sealand, a division of the Maersk container shipping company, said in a statement on Tuesday there had been "significant damage to logistics and transport infrastructure around the Pazarcik, Kahramanmaras, epicentre, including at the Port of Iskenderun".

It added that all its operations would cease at the port until further notice because of the "severe structural damage".

The company said it would divert cargo to other ports, including the nearby Mersin port. Hatay, on the Syrian border, is one of the most severely affected Turkish provinces. Earlier on Tuesday, Vice President Fuat Oktay said 872 people had died in Hatay. The overall death toll now stands at 3,549 people for Turkey and 1,602 for Syria.