ERBIL, Kurdistan Chronicle — A magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck south Turkey and northwest Syria early on Monday morning, killing more than 500 people and injuring hundreds. 

The quake hit at 04:17 a.m. local time (01:17 GMT) and was felt in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Cyprus, Greece and Israel.

Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay said in a statement that at least 1,710 buildings were leveled and search operations were ongoing to rescue the survivors. 

The official confirmed that 284 people were killed and 2,323 people were injured. However, the casualty toll is expected to rise further as the search operation is still ongoing. 

Turkey has declared a “level 4 alarm” that calls for international assistance. 

The quake was centred about 32km from Gaziantep, a major city and provincial capital in the country’s southeast border near the Syrian Kurdish town of Afrin. 

In Syria, already devastated by more than 11 years of civil war, a government health official said more than 237 people had been killed and some 600 were injured, mostly in the provinces of Hama, Aleppo and Latakia.

However, the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) put the death toll in Syria alone at 320, with thousands being injured. 

Kurdish leaders have sent messages of solidarity and expressed readiness to provide assistance. 

“My thoughts are with the families of the victims and the injured whose lives have been affected by last night’s earthquake across the region. The KRG stands ready to help with rescue efforts,” Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani wrote on Twitter. 

In the Kurdistan Region, including capital Erbil, hundreds of people rushed out of their homes and spent the night on the streets after feeling the jolt. However, there have been no reports of material damage or casualties. 

Aftershocks are expected to continue for “several days, several weeks, maybe even several months,” according Chris Elders, professor at the School of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Curtin University in Perth Australia, as quoted by Al Jazeera.

“People will continue to feel the effects of the earthquake for some time in this area,” Elders added.