ANKARA: A powerful earthquake has hit Gaziantep in south-eastern Turkey, near the border with Syria, BBC reported.
The US Geological Survey said the 7.8 magnitude tremor struck at 04:17 local time (01:17 GMT) at a depth of 17.9km.
The quake was felt in the capital Ankara and other Turkish cities, and also across the region, the report said.
Reports are coming in that several buildings have collapsed, and a number of people may be trapped.
BBC reported that a shopping mall in the city collapsed.
Turkish seismologists estimated the strength of the quake to be 7.4 magnitude.
They said that a second tremor hit the region just minutes later.
(Inputs from BBC)
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