A rescue operation is under way across much of southern Turkey and northern Syria following a huge earthquake that has killed more than 2,300 people.

The 7.8 magnitude quake struck near Gaziantep in the early hours of Monday while people were asleep.

A new 7.5-magnitude tremor hit at around 13:30 local time (10:30 GMT), which officials said was “not an aftershock”.The country’s disaster agency says some 1,500 people were killed in Turkey alone after the first quake, and more than 5,300 were wounded.Syrian authorities are reporting 810 dead and more than 2,000 injured, according to the AFP news agency.

Rescuers are racing to save people trapped beneath the rubble after hundreds of buildings collapsed in both countries.World leaders have pledged to send aid after Turkey issued an international appeal for help.Millions of people across Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Cyprus and Israel have felt the earthquake.