Can Erozden
26 February 2023•Update: 27 February 2023
ANKARA
Fans of Istanbul football club Besiktas threw thousands of stuffed toys onto the field Sunday in a symbol of solidarity with the children who were affected by the devastating Feb. 6 earthquakes in Türkiye.
Sunday's match between Besiktas and Fraport TAV Antalyaspor at Istanbul's Vodafone Park was paused at 4 minutes 17 seconds after the kickoff in memory of the initial earthquake, which struck at 4.17 a.m. local time (0117GMT).
Following the major earthquakes, the Istanbul football powerhouse launched a heartwarming campaign asking fans to bring stuffed toys to Besiktas' home ground Vodafone Park.
The toys will be donated to children in the earthquake-hit regions.
On the scoreboard at the stadium, the license plate codes of the 11 Turkish provinces jolted by the quakes flashed.
Football players of both clubs, including those in the substitute benches, volunteered to remove the toys from the pitch.
At least 44,374 people have been killed by two strong earthquakes that jolted southern Türkiye on Feb. 6, an official from the nation’s disaster agency said Sunday.
The 7.7 and 7.6 magnitude quakes, centered in Kahramanmaras province, affected more than 13 million people across 11 provinces, including Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye, Elazig and Sanliurfa.
More than 13 million people have been affected by the devastating quakes.
Several countries in the region, including Syria and Lebanon, also felt the strong tremors that struck Türkiye in the space of less than 10 hours.
Points shared after goalless draw
Fans of Besiktas were upset as the Black Eagles were held to a 0-0 draw with Antalyaspor in the Turkish Super Lig match.
The Besiktas vs. Antalyaspor match, a week 14 fixture, was previously postponed due to the 2022 Istanbul bombing.
On Nov. 13, 2022, the YPG/PKK terrorist group carried out an attack on Istanbul's crowded Istiklal Avenue that left six people dead and 81 others injured.
On Sunday, Besiktas scored the opener in the 80th minute, but the goal by Tayyip Talha Sanuc was disallowed after a video assistant referee (VAR) review as he was handballed.
Near the end of the match, Besiktas were awarded a penalty after Cenk Tosun was brought down in the area. But the visitors' goalkeeper Ataberk Dadakdeniz saved his penalty kick.
The points were shared as the match ended 0-0.
Besiktas have 40 points in 22 matches to come third in the Super Lig standings.
Antalyaspor, who are in the 12th spot, have 25 points in the league table.
Second-place Fenerbahce have collected 48 points. Galatasaray are the leaders with 54 points.
