On 6 February 2023, an earthquake struck southern and central Turkey, and northern and western Syria. It occurred 34 km (21 mi) west of the city of Gaziantep at 04:17 AM TRT (01:17 UTC), with a magnitude of at least Mw 7.8, and a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (Extreme). There was widespread damage and tens of thousands of fatalities. It was the deadliest and strongest earthquake in Turkey since the 1939 Erzincan earthquake, of the same magnitude, together with which it is the second strongest in the history of the country after 1668 North Anatolia earthquake. It was also the deadliest earthquake to have affected Syria since the 1822 Aleppo earthquake, one of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded in the Levant, and the deadliest earthquake worldwide since the 2010 Haiti earthquake. It was felt and caused structural damage as far as Palestine, Lebanon, Cyprus, and the Black Sea coast of Turkey.