Syrian refugee lost 25 relatives in earthquake after family 'fled war'

Syrian refugee loses 25 relatives in earthquake after his entire family ‘fled the war to find shelter…but fate caught up with us’

• Amhad Idris said the majority of his family were killed in the disaster in Saraqib 
• Mr Idris and his family had fled their home country to find refuge in 2012
• Read more: Husband buried alive beside his dead wife for two days of horror

A Syrian refugee lost 25 relatives in the earthquake that has devastated Turkey and Syria after his entire family ‘fled the war to find shelter’.

Amhad Idris, a displaced Syrian, said the majority of his family were killed in the disaster in Saraqib, Syria, and that ‘fate caught up with us’.

Mr Idris visited the morgue today and walked between the bodies of his loved ones. 

While clutching onto his dead grandson he said: ‘You have ached my heart. With everything that has happened. I never thought something like this could happen.

‘I lost my daughter; two of her sons – I mean my grandchildren; my daughter’s father-in-law’s family; my daughter’s mother-in-law and he sons – one of whom had children, a big family and several sons too.

Amhad Idris, a displaced Syrian, said 25 members of his family were killed in the disaster in Saraqib, Syria, and that ‘fate caught up with us’

Mr Idris visited the morgue today and walked between the bodies of his loved ones (pictured)

‘It is a total of about 25 people,’ he told Sky News. 

Mr Idris and his family had fled their home country to find refuge in Saraqib in 2012, which was recaptured by the Syrian army in 2020. 

He said: ‘We fled the war. Look at the injustice that pursues us, and what happened to us. 

‘We came here on the basis of finding safe shelter for us and our children. But in the end, look how fate has caught up with us here.’

Officials and medics have said around 9,057 people had died in Turkey and 2,662 in Syria from the 7.8-magnitude tremor on Monday, bringing the total to 11,719 – making it the deadliest seismic event in more than a decade.

The death toll is higher than the magnitude 7.8 earthquake that devastated Nepal in 2015, which killed more than 8,800 people. 

UN representative Mohamad Safa asked to ‘share positivity’ amid many negative stories related to the rising death toll. 

Rescuers in Turkey and Syria are continuing their search for survivors trapped inside the ruins of their homes brought down by the quake.

Against all the odds, search teams were still pulling people from the rubble today, more than 48 hours after the initial 7.8-magnitude quake.

The World Health Organization said many more victims are likely to be discovered in both countries. 

They suggested yesterday casualties could reach 20,000. 

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