04 April 2023 , 14:45
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A three-and-a-half-month-old baby has been reunited with its mother, 54 days after being rescued from the rubble in quake-hit southern Turkey.
Vetin Begdas was saved in the Hatay province 128 hours after devastating twin earthquakes struck Turkey and Syria at the start of February.
She had been named Gizem (Mystery) by the medical authorities who took care of her after she was rescued.
This week she was reunited with her mother who was previously declared dead, according to Turkey’s Ministry of Family and Social Services.
The baby and the mother were brought together only thanks to a recent DNA test that proved the relationship.
Death toll in Turkey-Syria earthquake surges to 5,000 as third tremor hits
The baby's father and two brothers tragically lost their lives in the quakes, which killed more than 50,000 people.
Vetin Begdaş who was rescued from the wreckage after 128 hours (TWITTER)The country’s Family and Social Services Minister Derya Yanik helped the pair reunite.
She said: "One of the most priceless tasks in the world is reuniting a mother with her child. Being a part of that happiness meant a lot to us as well.
"The baby is truly a miracle. The fact that she survived and had no health problems pulled at our heartstrings."
This week she was reunited with her mother who was previously declared dead (TWITTER)The minister tweeted a heartwarming video of the reunion on Monday, with the mother seen cuddling her child in the hospital bed.
Meanwhile in Syria, a newborn baby girl was been pulled alive from the rubble of a home in northern Syria, after relatives found her still tied by her umbilical cord to her dead mother.
The infant is the sole survivor of her immediate family, the rest of whom were all killed and the baby has since been adopted by her aunt and uncle.
“We heard a voice while we were digging,” relative Khalil al-Suwadi told AFP.
Rescuers stand on top of the rubble of collapsed buldings (AFP via Getty Images)“We cleared the dust and found the baby with the umbilical cord so we cut it and my cousin took her to the hospital.”
One doctor described his earthquake horror to the Mirror: "I thought I was going to die. Last night when I heard the rumbles, I thought it was jets in the sky. I was looking for jets in the sky and thought they were targeting buildings like before.
Atsu pulled from rubble alive and taken to hospital after earthquake in Turkey
“I thought maybe I will see the faces of children and babies with blood everywhere again. Those images from 2016 never leave my mind.”