Quake survivors hit by profiteering

Angry survivors of the Turkish earthquake complained today of looting, profiteering and political favouritism in the aid effort.

The death toll from the quake has reached 523 and with temperatures plunging victims scrambled to secure tents amid fears that the homeless could die of exposure.

Some blamed the ruling AK party for a slow response and accused officials of giving aid to supporters, after standing in long queues for tents only to be told that there were none left.

"Everyone is getting sick and wet. We have been waiting in line for four days like this and still nothing. It gets to our turn and they say they have run out," said Fetih Zengin, 38, an estate agent from Ercis, the town of 100,000 that was hardest hit by Sunday's 7.2 magnitude quake. "We slept under a piece of plastic erected on some wood boards we found. We have 10 children in our family, they are getting sick. Everyone needs a tent, snow is coming. It's a disaster."

"After 15 days, half of the people here will die, freeze to death," said Orhan Ogunc, a 37-year-old man in Guvencli, a village in the hills between Ercis and the city of Van. His family is sharing a tent with five others.

The number of injured has been put at 1,650 in Turkey's biggest quake in more than a decade.

A 19-year-old was pulled alive from the rubble of a collapsed building as searches for survivors went on at some sites - but at others rescuers stopped work.

Many in the mainly Kurdish region complained of profiteers exploiting the distribution of food and tents.

Ergun Ozmen, 37, carrying loaves of bread after queuing for food, said: "People are taking 10 tents and selling them. It's a disgrace. I slept in the municipal park all night in the rain. My shoes are filled with water." Some Turks have criticised the government of prime minister Tayyip Erdogan, which hopes to ease relations with the Kurdish minority that dominates the region. They suggest the party is prioritising aid for public servants in the region, a charge denied by party officials.

Several countries have answered Turkey's call for help to supply tents, prefabricated housing and containers, including Israel despite bad terms between the two governments.