In the early hours of 6 February, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit Türkiye (Turkey) and Syria, followed by another earthquake soon afterwards. Many thousands of people have been killed. Survivors who have been forced to flee their homes are now facing freezing temperatures.

These are the worst earthquakes to strike Türkiye (Turkey) in nearly 100 years. They have devastated a region where large refugee communities were living in tough conditions. The severe and continuous shocks from the earthquakes have reached cities in Syria like Aleppo, Latakia, Hama and Idlib where the humanitarian need is at its highest since brutal conflict began 12 years ago.

Infrastructure is heavily damaged, and we know that means people will struggle to find safe shelter, water and food especially in places impacted by ongoing conflict. There’s been huge loss of life, thousands injured, and many more still buried in the debris. The harsh weather and damaged roads make rescue efforts challenging. And in Syria, a cholera outbreak that began last year could quickly get further out of control. There’s no time to waste.

Please support Azam, Hassan, Omar and Naheem as they take on the monumental challenge of virtually covering 2836 miles (distance from Leeds to Aleppo via Turkey) over the next 83 days of which 30 of the days will be while they observe a daily fast during Ramadan and ending by taking part in the Leeds marathon together.