Stating that Hatay is one of the cities that suffered these losses the most, President Erdoğan conveyed his condolences to the loved ones of those who passed away and also wished Allah's mercy upon those who lost their lives in the earthquake.
Noting that Antakya, a region with thousands of years of history and a favourite settlement of many civilisations, suffered greatly in this disaster, President Erdoğan added:
"The scene of Antakya's destroyed and severely damaged buildings made it difficult for us to recognise the region, which we've visited dozens of times since we were young. The fact that the earthquake occurred during times of severe winter weather exacerbated the difficulty of the situation. Despite this, we exerted efforts with the state and the nation to aid the earthquake victims through our ministries, municipalities, non-governmental organisations and volunteers. Since that morning, our soldiers have been here, our gendarmerie has been here, our police have been here, our volunteers have been here, and they have all gathered here and have exerted effort with civil rescue and search and rescue teams in solidarity to the very end."
Stressing that the building of temporary accommodations centers was one of the crucial needs in this period, President Erdoğan said:
"We could not let persons whose homes were destroyed or damaged by earthquakes or who were unable to enter their homes live outside. We began with the tent as the initial step. When we consider the quality of the tent from the past to the present, what was the quality of the tent, and what is the quality of the tent today? Even the current level is not sufficient. Inshallah, we will take further steps about tents from now on. For instance, there are tents delivered by NATO, which we are currently evaluating here, as well as tents sent by Switzerland, and the quality of all these tents varies considerably. Now we will do the same thing with a much better quality, Inshallah. In terms of container homes, we are currently at a different stage. There are container homes built in our country, as well as those that Qatar used during the World Cup and had built specifically for the event, and we are currently utilising these container homes in our country. We are pleased with the container homes that we have seen. They promised 10,000 container homes, which are arriving gradually. 1,000 container homes have arrived, 4,000 are on the way, and the shipment of 10,000 will be completed within a month. They provide our citizens a much more relaxing atmosphere. Container cities are designed like urban infrastructure with electricity, water, sewage, roads, and service units. Providing space for 1,000 containers entails establishing a district with 5,000 residents. We will have constructed the infrastructure for a city with a population of 500,000 when we put 100,000 containers into service in two months. To be able to finish such a massive project in such a short period of time is a world first."
Expressing his gratitude for the support Türkiye received from friends throughout the world since the first moment of the earthquake, President Erdoğan said that in keeping with its tradition of generosity in response to the earthquake, Qatar donated significant financial assistance and pledged to deliver 10,000 container homes.
Noting that the high-quality container homes created for the World Cup held in Qatar in recent months were transported to Türkiye by ships, President Erdoğan wrapped up his remarks:
"Today, we are gathered at the first temporary accommodation centre we built with the 715 container homes the first three ships brought to our country. Many container cities will be built as the ships come in, and they will be used to assist our brothers and sisters in Hatay. We started constructing permanent residences in the meantime. Inshallah, we will be able to meet the urgent need by building 244,000 residences and 75,000 village houses in a year. "
We just visited our Field Hospital, and the comfort it provided made us happy as well. While we rebuild and restore our cities, we also establish the infrastructure necessary to ensure the uninterrupted provision of services in various sectors, including trade, education, and healthcare as well as housing. Inshallah, we will ensure that all of these commitments are kept when we meet you again a year from now to deliver permanent residences in Antakya."
Minister of Interior Süleyman Soylu, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Fatih Dönmez, Minister of National Defence Hulusi Akar, Minister of Health Fahrettin Koca, Presidency’s Director of Communications Fahrettin Altun, Governor of Hatay Rahmi Doğan, and a few deputies all attended the programme.
