LONDON

Muslim community on Friday launched a fundraising campaign at a London mosque to help victims of powerful earthquakes that hit Türkiye and Syria earlier this week.

Following one of the most powerful earthquakes in the region that caused widespread destruction, many people, as well as countries and organizations around the world, continue to extend a helping hand to the victims.

Islamic Relief, a leading Muslim charity in the UK, is one of them, as the organization held a fundraising campaign at the Finsbury Park Mosque in North London after the Friday prayer.

During the prayer, the special Friday khutbah, or sermon, was read out by one of the mosque's imams, featuring the earthquakes that hit Türkiye.

Muslims were urged to donate money generously as "Muslims are like one body," said the imam, citing a hadith (sayings of the Prophet Muhammad).

After the prayer, long queues were seen outside of the mosque where Muslims were standing to donate money.

Hamza, one of the Islamic Relief staff at the mosque, told Anadolu about their campaign over the devastating quakes.

He said it is "shocking what is happening" in Syria and Türkiye, adding that they are trying to do as much as they can "to help our brothers and sisters."

More than 19,300 people have died and over 77,700 others are injured since Monday’s powerful earthquakes in southern Türkiye, according to the latest official figures.

The magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 earthquakes, centered in Türkiye's Kahramanmaras province, have impacted some 13 million people across 10 Turkish provinces, including Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye, and Sanliurfa.

In neighboring Syria, the death toll has climbed above 3,300, with more than 5,200 people wounded.