Turkey-Syria earthquake: Video shows 7-year-old girl protecting her little brother under rubble

A video of a seven-year-old Syrian girl protecting her little brother under the rubble of their collapsed house following a powerful earthquake has gone viral on social media. Taking to Twitter early Wednesday (February 7), user Vlogging Northwestern Syria shared the 17-second video showing the girl and her brother, both frightened, stuck under the rubble. The girl was seen placing her hand over her brother's head to protect him as authorities were rescuing them. The siblings made it out safely.

In another tweet, United Nations (UN) representative Mohammad Safa said the sister and brother were under the rubble for 17 hours. "The 7-year-old girl who kept her hand on her little brother's head to protect him while they were under the rubble for 17 hours has made it safely. I see no one sharing. If she were dead, everyone would share! Share positivity..." Safa tweeted.

Earlier, a newborn in Syria was rescued from underneath the rubble. According to reports, the baby was born in the remains of a collapsed building. However, the mother who gave birth under the rubble died.

Turkey-Syria earthquake death toll over 8,300

More than 8,300 people have died due to a massive earthquake of 7.8 magnitude that struck Turkey and Syria on Monday, news agency AFP reported on Wednesday. This was followed by another earthquake almost as powerful as the first one, toppling thousands of buildings including hospitals, schools and apartment blocks. Tens of thousands of people have been injured and countless others left homeless in Turkey and northern Syria.

On Tuesday, rescuers in both countries braved the bitter cold to dig survivors out of the rubble of collapsed buildings.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan declared a state of emergency in 10 provinces of the country. However, residents in several damaged cities voiced anger and despair at what they said was a slow and inadequate response from the authorities to the earthquake, a report by news agency Reuters on Wednesday said.

"There is not even a single person here. We are under the snow, without a home, without anything," said Murat Alinak, whose home in Malatya had collapsed. The Reuters report said that with little immediate help available, Turkish citizens were seen picking through rubble sometimes without even basic tools to search for survivors. The death toll in Turkey stands at5,894.

President Erdogan also said that his government would open up hotels in the tourism hub of Antalya to temporarily house people impacted by the earthquakes.

Meanwhile, in Syria, the death toll has climbed to at least 2,470. Funerals for several families were held in Hama city on Tuesday. Mosques in the country were seen opening doors to families whose homes were damaged. Speaking to Reuters, a UN humanitarian official said that fuel shortages and the harsh weather were creating obstacles. "The infrastructure is damaged, the roads that we used to use for humanitarian work are damaged," UN resident coordinator El-Mostafa Benlamlih said.

More than a dozen countries including the United States, China and India pledged to help, and search teams as well as relief supplies started to arrive by air.

(With inputs from agencies)