this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. a "high—altitude object" is shot down by us fighterjets over alaska. white house spokesmanjohn kirby says it posed "a threat to the safety of civilian aircraft". the painstaking search for survivors continues in turkey and syria, after the quakes. we follow one rescuer and his team, among the tangled ruins of apartment blocks, looking for signs of life. armageddon... armageddon. we report from the quake zone inside syria, with one of the first internationaljournalists to get into aleppo.

hello and welcome. the united states says it has shot down a "high—altitude object" flying over the state of alaska. the white house said it was much smaller than the recently downed chinese balloon, but was still the size of a small car and could have posed a threat to commercial planes. let's get more now from our correspondent nomia iqbal. she is in washington. nomia. yes, this ress she is in washington. nomia. yes, this press conference _ she is in washington. nomia. yes, this press conference was - she is in washington. nomia. 133 this press conference was held a short while ago. at the top of the agenda we were expecting to hear about the latest on the ukraine war, also america's assistance for turkey following that devastating

earthquake and also president lula of brazil is visiting, but it was complete dominated once it was revered by the white house spokespersonjohn kirby revered by the white house spokesperson john kirby that around 1:30pm eastern time here in the us, this high—altitude object was shot down. it was travelling at 40,000 feet, which was lower than the chinese spy balloon. that was floating across america last week, it was smaller in size, but we are being told that... they are not saying it was not a spy balloon, but they are not see either way at the moment. we got more details, but have a listen to the white house spokesmanjohn kirby. we're calling this an object because that's the best description we have right now. we do not know who owns it, whether it's state—owned, or corporate—owned or privately owned. we just don't know. we don't know, as i said, state—owned, we don't know if it's state owned. and we don't understand the full purpose. we don't have any... we don't have any information that would confirm a stated

purpose for this object. we do expect to be able to recover the debris, since it fell not only within our territorial space but on what we believe is frozen water. so a recovery effort will be made, and we're hopeful that it will be successful, and then we can learn a little bit more about it. after we were given details byjohn kirby, there was another press conference that was held by the pentagon, and patrick ryder, brigadier general macklin, gave a few more details about the incident. at the direction of the president of the united — at the direction of the president of the united states, _ at the direction of the president of the united states, a _ at the direction of the president of the united states, a fighter- the united states, a fighter aircraft _ the united states, a fighter aircraft successfully - the united states, a fighter aircraft successfully took i the united states, a fighter. aircraft successfully took down the united states, a fighter- aircraft successfully took down a high-attitude _ aircraft successfully took down a high—altitude object— aircraft successfully took down a high—altitude object off - aircraft successfully took down a high—altitude object off the - aircraft successfully took down a | high—altitude object off the coast of alaska — high—altitude object off the coast of alaska at _ high—altitude object off the coast of alaska at 1:45pm _ high—altitude object off the coast of alaska at 1:45pm eastern - high—altitude object off the coast - of alaska at 1:45pm eastern standard time today—

of alaska at 1:45pm eastern standard time today within _ of alaska at 1:45pm eastern standard time today within us _ of alaska at 1:45pm eastern standard time today within us sovereign - time today within us sovereign airspace. — time today within us sovereign airspace. over— time today within us sovereign airspace, over us _ time today within us sovereign airspace, over us territorial - time today within us sovereign . airspace, over us territorial water. 0n airspace, over us territorial water. orr the _ airspace, over us territorial water. oh the very— airspace, over us territorial water. oh the very hihe, _ airspace, over us territorial water. 0n the very nine, space _ airspace, over us territorial water. 0n the very nine, space commandl 0n the very nine, space command detected — 0n the very nine, space command detected irr— 0n the very nine, space command detected in object _ 0n the very nine, space command detected in object and _ 0n the very nine, space command detected in object and identified l detected in object and identified the object — detected in object and identified the object using _ detected in object and identified the object using fighter- detected in object and identified the object using fighter aircraft. detected in object and identified i the object using fighter aircraft —— on february— the object using fighter aircraft —— on february nine. _ the object using fighter aircraft —— on february nine. the _ the object using fighter aircraft —— on february nine. the object- the object using fighter aircraft —— on february nine. the object wasl on february nine. the object was flying _ on february nine. the object was flying at— on february nine. the object was flying at 40.000 _ on february nine. the object was flying at 40,000 feet _ on february nine. the object was flying at 40,000 feet and - on february nine. the object was flying at 40,000 feet and posed| on february nine. the object was. flying at 40,000 feet and posed a reasonable — flying at 40,000 feet and posed a reasonable threat _ flying at 40,000 feet and posed a reasonable threat to _ flying at 40,000 feet and posed a reasonable threat to the _ flying at 40,000 feet and posed a reasonable threat to the safety. flying at 40,000 feet and posed a reasonable threat to the safety of| reasonable threat to the safety of civilian _ reasonable threat to the safety of civilian flight. _ reasonable threat to the safety of civilian flight. us _ reasonable threat to the safety of civilian flight. us northern - reasonable threat to the safety of. civilian flight. us northern command is beginning — civilian flight. us northern command is beginning recovery— civilian flight. us northern command is beginning recovery operations - is beginning recovery operations now _ is beginning recovery operations now~ us— is beginning recovery operations now. us northern _ is beginning recovery operations now. us northern command - is beginning recovery operationsi now. us northern command and is beginning recovery operations - now. us northern command and alaska demand _ now. us northern command and alaska demand coordinated _ now. us northern command and alaska demand coordinated with _ now. us northern command and alaska demand coordinated with the _ demand coordinated with the assistance _ demand coordinated with the assistance of— demand coordinated with the assistance of the _ alaska national guard, federal aviation — alaska national guard, federal aviation administration - alaska national guard, federal aviation administration and... i alaska national guard, federal. aviation administration and... do not have — aviation administration and... do not have any— aviation administration and... do not have any more _ aviation administration and... do not have any more description - aviation administration and... do not have any more description ofl aviation administration and... do i not have any more description of the object _ not have any more description of the object at _ not have any more description of the object at this — not have any more description of the object at this time. _ not have any more description of the object at this time. the _ not have any more description of the object at this time. the object - not have any more description of the object at this time. the object was . object at this time. the object was about— object at this time. the object was about the — object at this time. the object was about the size _ object at this time. the object was about the size of _ object at this time. the object was about the size of a _ object at this time. the object was about the size of a small— object at this time. the object was about the size of a small car, so. about the size of a small car, so not similar— about the size of a small car, so not similar in— about the size of a small car, so not similar in size _ about the size of a small car, so not similar in size or— about the size of a small car, so not similar in size or shape - about the size of a small car, so not similar in size or shape to l about the size of a small car, so. not similar in size or shape to the high—altitude surveillance - not similar in size or shape to the i high—altitude surveillance balloon that was— high—altitude surveillance balloon that was taken _ high—altitude surveillance balloon that was taken down _ high—altitude surveillance balloon that was taken down off - high—altitude surveillance balloon that was taken down off the - high—altitude surveillance balloon that was taken down off the coast high—altitude surveillance balloon . that was taken down off the coast of south _ that was taken down off the coast of south carolina — that was taken down off the coast of south carolina on _ that was taken down off the coast of south carolina on february- that was taken down off the coast of south carolina on february fourth. l president biden was accused of under

reaction by some over the suspected chinese spy balloon, do you think people are speculating this could be an overreaction, certainly the white house making it clear this was president biden's decision to shoot it down? , ~ _ president biden's decision to shoot itdown? , ~ _ , it down? yes, mr kirby emphasised it was mr biden — it down? yes, mr kirby emphasised it was mr biden who _ it down? yes, mr kirby emphasised it was mr biden who ordered _ it down? yes, mr kirby emphasised it was mr biden who ordered for - it down? yes, mr kirby emphasised it was mr biden who ordered for it - it down? yes, mr kirby emphasised it was mr biden who ordered for it to i was mr biden who ordered for it to happen, and he said it was out of an abundance of caution, but a force we know there's been a huge political pressure on mr biden, certainly by the republicans, who have accused him for being weak on china and not acting sooner, because the spy balloon that was shot down by saturday did travel across much of america for more than a week. but i would add thatjohn kirby did say in that briefing, he said he does not regret, sorry, the president does not regret the way that he handled the first balloon, so as far as mr biden is concerned, the course that the ministration took was the correct one. he actually spoke a short while ago. he is meeting with the brazilian president, president lula, today at the white house, and

when he was asked about this latest object, he said it was a success. in object, he said it was a success. in terms of it being shot down, which, as we said there, he ordered for that to happen. the timeline, as i understand it, thursday night, this object was spotted. they left it until friday lunchtime to shoot down something they said was a threat to commercial aircraft. presumably that had to do with where it would fall. it fell unfrozen water and ice to you and me. was that so they could collect more information from the debris and was there also more information on the debris from the suspected chinese spy balloon? brute the debris from the suspected chinese spy balloon?- the debris from the suspected chinese spy balloon? we are still when ou chinese spy balloon? we are still when you hear— chinese spy balloon? we are still when you hear more _ chinese spy balloon? we are still when you hear more about - chinese spy balloon? we are still when you hear more about the i chinese spy balloon? we are still - when you hear more about the chinese spy when you hear more about the chinese spy balloon. —— still waiting to hear. that innovation is still ongoing. they have to go down to the sea bed to recover the balloon. some stuff has the recovered, but it will take some time for it to be analysed which the fbi is planning to do.

just in terms of this object, what we have been told is that it was spotted in the last 24 hours and then they took the call to shoot it down around about 1:30pm, just a few hours ago my time here, eastern time, and as you say, it was over frozen water, so they clearly waited until there was a safe area, hovering over the canadian— alaskan border but mr kirby did say that it posed a threat to any civilian aircraft. it did not say it posed a threat necessarily to people on the ground. threat necessarily to people on the round. ., ., ., ground. nomia, we will leave it there for now, _ ground. nomia, we will leave it there for now, and _ ground. nomia, we will leave it there for now, and we - ground. nomia, we will leave it there for now, and we will - ground. nomia, we will leave it there for now, and we will be i there for now, and we will be returning to this story a little later on with a us military analyst. but let's turn to turkey and syria now. fears are growing for the hundreds of thousands of people there in need after monday's devastating earthquakes. living in makeshift shelters and cars in freezing conditions, there are warnings that aid is not reaching areas fast enough. more than 23,000 people are now known to have died. syrian state media says

the government has approved international aid delivery to rebel—held areas in cooperation with the help of the un, syrian red crescent and international red cross. 0ur chief international correspondent lyse doucet has been giving us the latest from gaziantep in turkey. yes, you join us here in the city of gaziantep. it's only an hour and a half from the epicentre of this deadly earthquake and it's now become a relief hub, with aircraft flying in from around the world to help with this urgent rescue effort. and here along this road, you can see behind me, the diggers, the rescue teams are still at work, some of them working night and day, sleepless nights and day, hoping against hope to find people still buried alive under this rubble. this whole road is fraught with emotion — cries of loved ones, cries erupting in this dark and freezing night, anger and grief boiling over as rescue teams

try to reassure them they're doing everything they can, with so many people saying they believe their loved ones are still alive. this is just one snapshot and it's being repeated in towns and cities across southern turkey, and indeed across the border in northern syria as well, where many areas were also hard—hit by this seismic shock. it's been incredibly difficult for any journalist to reach northern syria, but one of our colleagues from the bbc arabic service will give us an eyewitness account injust a moment. but first, quentin sommerville has been following one of the rescue teams in one of the worst affected areas of southern turkey, in antakya.

in the darkest hours, a single light shines brightest. in antakya's hour of need, this man... he speaks in turkish ..erdal, has emerged as a saviour. he'll climb where others won't dare, deep inside the ruins of this shattered city. anything to save a life. it's been hours since anyone was found here, but still they work late into the night. i have to be very quiet because they're listening to see if there's anybody still alive in the building. they're taking huge risks, going into very dangerous spaces. because we're moving into day five here, and they realise, there's almost no time left. an amateur mountaineer and professional writer, erdal has taken command here. someone or something is moving inside the building, but they can't reach them. they've tried looking in from the front, no success. they put a camera probe in. now they're going round the back of the building to see if they can

find any sign of life. the floors are sandwiched tight. it's a treacherous space, but erdal�*s crew try to find a way inside. others have rallied to his courage. his team is now 100—strong. they've already saved dozens of people. so much risk, so much risk. but so much people wait us. we hear them. to find a way inside. but we are not stop here. how do you feel about what's happened to your country? armageddon... armageddon. the bitter light of morning lays bare the earthquake's ruin. anta kya is destroyed. and down in amongst it,

erdal and his men are still working. in the past five days, he's managed only a few hours' sleep. erdal thought that there was someone still alive here. a relative said that they could hear something. there's no—one. but there is the overpowering smell of dead bodies. 0n the second and third day after the earthquake, they were finding a lot of people. they're hardly finding anyone now, almost no—one. this is moving from a rescue phase to a recovery phase. it's very unlikely that they're going to find more survivors in this location. erdal, we left you 5—6 hours ago. did you find anyone else last night? no, no.

translation: we couldn't find anyone, only a dog. i its owner was dead. so, what happens now? translation: i don't know. since families are sensitive, they insist people are still alive under the rubble, so we keep trying to work in places where we don't find any corpses. erdalfound two of narula's children. and even though it's been many days, narula can't believe his wife and other child aren't still alive. the building isjust across the street, but his wife and child can't be reached, even by erdal�*s team. translation: erdaltore himself apart for my two children, - went to places no—one would go. he saved my two children. tonight, the search goes on and still shining a light into the darkness is erdal. quentin sommerville,

bbc news, antakya. but across the border, in northern syria, it's in the northwest of syria, the last rebel—held enclave, that aid officials tell us was the worst hit in this earthquake. but areas in the north under syrian government control have also been hit. that includes the major syrian city of aleppo. the correspondent for the bbc�*s arabic service, assaf aboud, was able to obtain government permission to visit aleppo and we've translated his report for you. translation: we are now in the shahar neighbourhood, one of the areas damaged by the earthquake. aleppo is the closest city to the epicentre of the earthquake. until now, around 400 people have died in the city of aleppo. hundreds of injured remain in the rubble. in this area, rescue efforts are being supported by government forces in the search

for the injured. they are also working on demolishing damaged buildings out of fear they might collapse at a later stage. around 60 buildings have collapsed, but there are around 400 others that are so damaged and at risk of collapse at any moment. the reports say some 55,000 people have lost their homes and they are now spread across different shelters in the city. the death toll has surpassed 4,000 people in both government and rebel held areas and over 7,000 people are injured or unaccounted for. food, of course, just one of many things, many supplies needed by so many. today, there was news from damascus, according to the syrian state media, the sana news agency,

that the syrian government has now agreed that food aid and other supplies needed in earthquake—stricken areas can cross the lines of this 12—year—old conflict, but aid officials have told the bbc that the success of this, what seems to be a concession by the syrian government, will depend both on the syrian government forces on the ground as well as the forces of the opposition across northern syria. so, in the words of a senior un official, it's a small step forward, an important step, but many more will be needed urgently. we'll continue our special coverage from gaziantep and many other places across southern turkey and inside syria, but for now, it's goodbye from us here in gaziantep. 0ur our thanks to lyse and her team for that reporting. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: more on the object

that was shot down alaska earlier on friday — we'll get the views of a military analyst. there's mr mandela, mr nelson mandela, a free man taking his first steps into a new south africa. iran's spiritual leader, ayatollah khomeini, has said he has passed a death sentence on salman rushdie, the british author of a book which many muslims say is blasphemous. the people of haiti have flocked to church to give thanks for the ousting of their former president baby doc duvalier. because of his considerable value as a stallion, - shergar was kept in a special secure box in the stud - farm's central block. shergar was driven away. in a horse box the thieves had brought with them. there stepped down from the plane a figure in mourning, elizabeth ii, queen of this realm and of all her other realms and territories,

head of the commonwealth, defender of the faith. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: a "high—altitude object" is shot down by us fighterjets over alaska. white house spokesmanjohn kirby says it posed "a threat to the safety of civilian aircraft". hope and despair in turkey and syria, as the painstaking search for survivors continues — more than 23,000 people are known to have died after monday's earthquakes. well, let's get more on our developing story this hour. the shooting down of an object flying high above alaska. i'm joined now by brendan kearney, former military colonel, from santa rosa, california. thank you so much forjoining us.

how surprised are you with this news? it how surprised are you with this news? , . , how surprised are you with this news? , ., , , , , news? it is a little bit surprising. of course. _ news? it is a little bit surprising. of course, there's _ news? it is a little bit surprising. of course, there's a _ news? it is a little bit surprising. of course, there's a whole - news? it is a little bit surprising. of course, there's a whole lot i news? it is a little bit surprising. of course, there's a whole lot of| of course, there's a whole lot of questions that are left unanswered, in terms of the exact point of origin and what this object is that was shot down, so it is an interesting question that i think we are going to have to take some time to let the situation develop just a little bit more and then we will see where it goes. it certainly the timing, considering last week's events, this is a little bit unusual. events, this is a little bit unusual-— events, this is a little bit unusual. ., ., , unusual. can we ask for your help in iecin: unusual. can we ask for your help in piecing the — unusual. can we ask for your help in piecing the clues _ unusual. can we ask for your help in piecing the clues together, - unusual. can we ask for your help in piecing the clues together, and - unusual. can we ask for your help in piecing the clues together, and if i piecing the clues together, and if 22 jets shot down the object using a sidewinder missile, the object, it is said, was the size of a small car flying at 40,000 feet, do you have any idea what the object could have been? clearly it could be another one of the balloons out of china, but we don't know. 0bviously

the balloons out of china, but we don't know. obviously it would be a smaller version of what we saw happen last week, off the coast of the united states east coast, since that was described as being something like three bus lengths in size, as opposed to this small automobile, but again, these packages that are used for intelligence purposes, both in satellites and in balloons, in reconnaissance aircraft, are specifically designed for a purpose. we just don't know right now exactly what this one was going after. band what this one was going after. and 'ust to be what this one was going after. and just to be clear, you would not expect this would be from someone in america, this would be a foreign actor? i america, this would be a foreign actor? ., ~' america, this would be a foreign actor? ., ,, ., , ., , actor? i would think so. to be able to launch this— actor? i would think so. to be able to launch this type _ actor? i would think so. to be able to launch this type of _ actor? i would think so. to be able to launch this type of device i actor? i would think so. to be able to launch this type of device at i to launch this type of device at this time of year, considering the veiling winds, you are really looking on something that is probably, in all likelihood, coming from the asian landmass and moving

itself across alaska, and that is just because of the timing, time of year that we have. the winds are primarily from the west to the east and this thing was shot down, apparently, the map i saw, it looks at the northern portion of alaska. and i've been there, i spent a lot of time there. it's a huge estate and at this time of year, we are in the depths of winter up there. so where could it have been heading and what was the area, for people that don't know, that it was caught above? . , don't know, that it was caught above? ., , ., ., don't know, that it was caught above? ., ., ., above? that is again part of the ruestion above? that is again part of the question that _ above? that is again part of the question that i _ above? that is again part of the question that i wish _ above? that is again part of the question that i wish we - above? that is again part of the question that i wish we had i above? that is again part of the question that i wish we had a i above? that is again part of the i question that i wish we had a better answer to. alaska, just by virtue of its geographic location, is the home of a number of air force installations, also some very, very sophisticated early warning stations that are up there, they are part of the north american air defence command that really incorporates a lot of canadian assets also, from

the yukon territory. what it was exactly looking at, i'm not sure, but this thing at 40,000 feet certainly did pose a threat to civilian aircraft that transit that particular part of alaska, as it crosses the polls, so this is interesting series of questions that you're asking me, and you and i are going to have a good time trying to figure it out, but i think we are going to have to wait for further information, really, as to what this thing was really all about.- thing was really all about. brendan kearne , thing was really all about. brendan kearney. joining — thing was really all about. brendan kearney, joining us _ thing was really all about. brendan kearney, joining us live _ thing was really all about. brendan kearney, joining us live from i kearney, joining us live from california, trying to get to the bottom of this. thank you. well, let's get more on this story by speaking to shashankjoshi, who's the defence editor at the economist. hejoins us from north london. not many details that we can say for certain about this, but this trend of high—altitude objects suddenly

emerging, is that something that we should be worried about and why do you think that might be the case? these have always been there stop i can point to the cold war examples, going back to the eisenhower administration of the united states, using very high—altitude balloons to spy using very high—altitude balloons to spy on the soviet union. so there's nothing new about this technology, although the specifics of manoeuvring and collection have of course, a long way. what i think is interesting is that we are learning interesting is that we are learning in the last week that a number of these balloons from china have overflown the united states, but some of them were missed because these are travelling so high and at relatively slow speeds that traditional radar that is equipped to look out for, say, russian bombers or surveillance aircraft is not going to necessarily catch these kinds of things. but what the americans have done is look at the signature, the electronic emissions,

of a balloon that has flown over the us recently, not the one last week but the ones earlier in the biden administration, and they have looked retrospectively at their database to see what other things stand out in the process of doing... they realise they were three similar overflights in the trump administration stuck the trump administration officials say they never knew about this, and the reason they never knew about this is, of course, at the time they did not have the same comparable means to detect these kind of things at this kind of altitude. so means to detect these kind of things at this kind of altitude.— at this kind of altitude. so you are sa in: at this kind of altitude. so you are saying they _ at this kind of altitude. so you are saying they are — at this kind of altitude. so you are saying they are getting _ at this kind of altitude. so you are saying they are getting better- at this kind of altitude. so you are saying they are getting better at l saying they are getting better at capturing them or they are more concerned that they were more under donald trump? i concerned that they were more under donald trump?— donald trump? i think the answer is both. the donald trump? i think the answer is both- they are _ donald trump? i think the answer is both. they are getting _ donald trump? i think the answer is both. they are getting better i donald trump? i think the answer is both. they are getting better at i both. they are getting better at identifying them, i can say. we cannot say better at capturing them, because so far we've had one confirmed to shoot down. i would suspect this may well be a balloon, although i share your previous�*s

just�*s concerns about not speculating. this was smaller and a much lower altitude that is interesting and very noticeable as well. but the biden administration came under a great deal of political criticism, particularly from republicans, for not dealing with that last balloon quickly and i think it is no surprise that when they found an opportunity to take a shot at whatever it was over alaskan waters, they did so, presumably one consideration being that this was to avoid the potential circus of yet another foreign object transiting the continental united states for days or weeks. another consideration, as i said, was at the height, it was more disruptive to civilian air traffic as well. shashankjoshi, thank you for urinalysis there. no doubt people

looking quickly at how these things calm down —— your analysis. more bbc news coming up next. hello there. it's been a very quiet week, thanks to high pressure. we've seen a lot of dry weather around across much of the country — that is, away from the north and west of scotland. and as we head into the weekend, high pressure continues to bring a lot of dry and settled weather. it'll stay on the mild side, but there will be quite a bit of cloud around generally with limited spells of sunshine. now, through tonight, there'll be a lot of cloud around generally — again, across northern western scotland, maybe some western parts of england and wales, could be a little bit of light rain and drizzle. most places will stay dry. i think with more cloud cover tonight, it shouldn't be quite as cold as we've seen the last few nights, particularly across southern areas. but there'll still be some frosty pockets here and there where the clouds break. 0ur big area of high pressure holds on, then, for both saturday and sunday,

and we'll continue to be in a fairly mild air mass all the while, with our air coming in generally from the south. so, saturday, then, a lot of cloud around, there will be some glimmers of brightness here and there. again, the cloud could be thick enough across some western areas for the odd spot of drizzle, but most places should stay dry. and again, winds will be light, and there's not much wind to disturb the atmosphere to break up the cloud. a little bit breezier across the northwest of scotland. but we get some brightness — for example, the northeast of scotland, it'll be very mild temperatures up to 13—14 celsius, but double—figure values right across the board, so much milder than what we should be at this point in february. as we head through saturday night, again, it's largely dry. a lot of cloud around, so that should keep the frost at bay — but where any cloud breaks up here for a length of time, then we could see the odd the frost pocket here and there. so, sunday, then, it's another rather cloudy day. there will be some sunny breaks here and there, probably the best of it towards northern and eastern parts. but across the board, whether it's cloudy or it's brighter, temperatures will be in double figures, it'll feel very mild.

as we move out of the weekend into the start of the new week, high pressure continues to bring fine, dry weather with some sunshine, certainly monday and tuesday — but then, by wednesday onwards, we could start to see these weather fronts working their way in off the atlantic to bring some of us outbreaks of rain. but there's still a question mark, whether or not these weather fronts make inroads. but one things for certain — with the southerly winds, it'll stay pretty mild, even at the beginning and towards the end of the week, with that chance of some rain or showers from wednesday onwards. stay tuned.

this is bbc news. the headlines. a "high—altitude object" is shot down by us fighterjets over alaska— white house spokesmanjohn kirby wouldn't confirm if it was a ballon but says it posed "a threat to the safety of civilian aircraft" hope and despair in turkey and syria, as the painstaking search for survivors continues — more than 23 thousand people are known to have died after monday's earthquakes syria's government gives permission for international aid for victims of the devastating earthquakes to be sent to rebel—held areas. this follows days of appeals by aid agencies. thousands of tents, blankets and hygiene kits are among the resources being collected for victims. former newcastle united footballer christian atsu is still missing in the turkish quake.

his partner believes he's alive and calls for equipment to be sent