TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Five Indonesians are still missing following the earthquake in Turkey and Syria in which thousands have died. Foreign Ministry officials said that they haven’t been able to contact a mother of two in Antakya and two spa therapists in Diyarbakir.

"Until now, we haven't been able to reach them," the ministry's Director of Protection of Indonesian Nationals and Indonesian Legal Entities, Judha Nugraha, told Tempo on Wednesday, February 8.

There are currently 6,500 Indonesians living in Turkey. According to initial reports from the Indonesian Embassy in Ankara, 500 of them were living in and around the earthquake area.

The embassy reported on Feb. 6 that 10 Indonesians were directly impacted by the earthquake. Four of them are still being treated in hospitals, while six are still being evacuated.

The Indonesian Ambassador to Turkey, Lalu Muhamad Iqbal, said in a media brief on Tuesday that the embassy is seeking to evacuate all Indonesians affected by the earthquake. So far, there have been no reports of Indonesian casualties, but many are very much affected. There are 40 Indonesians whose homes were completely damaged.

The latest reports say that at least 5,894 people died in Turkey and 1,932 in Syria. There are fears that the number of victims will continue to rise. The WHO estimates up to 20,000 people may have died.

DANIEL A. FAJRI

Click here to get the latest news updates from Tempo on Google News