Antioch, founded in 300BC on the Orontes River in modern Turkey's south east edge, was a major trading post of the Roman and Byzantine empires, drawing over time a diverse ethnic and religious population that created a rich local culture. But in 526AD an earthquake destroyed the city, claiming tens of thousands of lives. History repeated itself on 6 February, when a magnitude 7.8 earthquake in Gaziantep province 100 miles north east rocked Antakya again; nine hours later another of 7.7 magnitude reduced large parts of the city to rubble. More than 50,000 lives have been lost to date in an area spanning Syria and Turkey. Hundreds of thousands of people are homeless and 54,000 buildings destroyed.
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