A fundraising campaign organised by eight national TV stations and various Turkish celebrities has raised approximately $6.1 billion to assist victims of the recent earthquake.
The relief effort, known as Turkey One Heart, was launched by multiple Turkish television and radio stations in response to the disaster. Millions of people from Turkey and other countries, including children, adults, corporations, religious groups, private organisations, and labour unions, participated in the extensive fundraising drive aimed at helping tens of thousands of earthquake survivors.
The fundraiser lasted for seven hours and was hosted by well-known Turkish TV personalities such as Nihat Hatipoglu, Pelin Cift, former model Çağla Şikel, media tycoon Acun Ilcal, and others, according to Daily Sabah.
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In addition, telecom companies in the country sent out over 9 million SMS as part of the fundraising campaign. Numerous individuals, including children, soldiers, diplomats, and CEOs of major businesses, donated gifts to Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) and the Turkish Red Crescent.
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Several famous personalities, including Love For Rent actor Barış Arduç, TV presenter Esra Erol, and Warrior star Berk Oktay, answered phone calls for donations on stage during the event. The campaign also featured the participation of many other well-known celebrities, such as Burak Özçivit, Hande Erçel, Engin Akyürek, Afra Saraçoğlu, Burak Deniz, Alp Navruz, Aslı Enver, Merve Dizdar, Barış Falay, Selahattin Paşalı, Özge Özpirinçci, Uğur Güneş, Murat Yıldırım, Mehmet Özgür, Birkan Sokullu, Eda Ece, Melisa Aslı Pamuk, Ismail Hacıoğlu, Kadir Doğulu and his wife Neslihan Atagül Doğulu, Seda Sayan, Hasan Can Kaya, Aras Bulut Iynemli, Ezgi Mola, and Halit Ergenç.
During the live telecast, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan joined in a call and expressed confidence that the campaign would raise an exceptional amount of money from the people, highlighting their generosity. He emphasized that all proceeds from the campaign would go towards helping the earthquake victims. “Our goal is to construct secure and peaceful living quarters in place of every demolished building within a year, where our people can reside. I am hopeful that we will overcome this challenge together,” he declared.
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