Feb. 16 (UPI) -- The United Nations called for $1 billion in aid for Turkey on Thursday after this month's devastating earthquakes there and in Syria.
The funding will cover a three-month period and will help more than 5.2 million people affected by the disaster in Turkey, U.N. secretary-general Antonio Guterres said in a statement making an appeal to member nations.
"Turkey is home to the largest number of refugees in the world and has shown enormous generosity to its Syrian neighbors for years," Guterres said. "Now is the time for the world to support the people of Turkey -- just as they have stood in solidarity with others seeking assistance."
Guterres added that "people are suffering" as he urged the international community "to step up and fully fund this critical effort."
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The announcement came after reports described the miraculous rescue of a 17-year-old girl who was pulled from the ruins of an apartment building alive on Thursday.
Aleyna Olmez was rescued 248 hours after she was buried by the rubble more than ten days ago, CNN reported.
"We will never forget you," her uncle told rescuers after she was pulled from the rubble in Kahramanmaraş, a southern city near the epicenter of the earthquake, the BBC reported.
Reporters with Turkey's state news channel TRT Haber were granted access to Olmez in her hospital room, and footage showed her with her eyes open and she shook her head and smiled when she was asked how she was doing.
Aleyna's doctors told TRT Haber that the girl couldn't eat or drink anything the whole time she was trapped but was "still in a good condition."
More than 41,000 people have died in Turkey and Syria because of the two earthquakes, according to the BBC. It was not immediately clear how many people are still missing.
