Kurdistan Region oil export resumes via Turkey’s Ceyhan

As search and rescue operations continue, the death toll is expected to rise.
A worker stands next to an oil pipeline in the Kurdistan Region. (Photo: AFP)
A worker stands next to an oil pipeline in the Kurdistan Region. (Photo: AFP)

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Iraqi Kurdistan Region’s oil export through the pipeline that stretches to Turkey’s Ceyhan port has resumed after it had stopped the flow as a precautionary measure following the powerful earthquake and its numerous strong aftershocks that rocked the country, according to a statement.

The oil flow started streaming again at 9:45 PM (1845GMT) through the pipeline to the Turkish Ceyhan port, according to a statement from the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Ministry of Natural Resources on Tuesday. 

The ministry announced the halt on early Monday hours after a powerful 7.8 magnitude earthquake devastated at least 10 southern provinces in Turkey, killing 6,234 so far while over 38,000 others had been wounded by the quake.

As search and rescue operations continue, the death toll is expected to rise.

At least 13.5 million people in 10 provinces have been affected, Minister of Environment, Urbanization, and Climate Murat Kurum reported in a press conference on Tuesday morning in Gaziantep, another quake-stricken province.

At least 70 countries have pledged support for the rescue operation in Turkey, including Ankara’s allies, NATO, US, and other Western nations.

Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani in a phone call with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu reiterated Iraq’s Kurdish region support and readiness to extend further help in the rescue efforts.

Barzani previously instructed the deployment of 25 ambulances and three search-and-rescue teams to both southern Turkey and northern Syria.