Turkish Cypriot Prime Minister Unal Ustel said the sentences were too lenient and that the authorities would appeal, AFP news agency reported.
“The hotel owners did not receive the punishment we expected,” Ustel said. “However, despite this, everyone was convicted, from those responsible for building the hotel to the architect. That made us partly happy.”
More than 50,000 people died in Turkey and Syria in the February 6, 2023 earthquake.
About 160,000 buildings collapsed or were severely damaged, leaving 1.5 million people homeless.
The Turkish government announced several weeks later that hundreds of people were under investigation and that nearly 200 people had been arrested, including construction contractors and property owners.
A group of 39 people, including boys and girls, teachers and parents from the Turkish College of Education in Famagusta, had traveled to Adiyaman for a volleyball tournament when the earthquake struck.
Among them, four parents are the only survivors. They managed to dig themselves out of the rubble, while 35 others, including all children, died.
The volleyball group chose the seven-story Isias Grand, along with as many as 40 tour guides who were there for training.
It was one of Adiyaman’s most famous hotels, but it collapsed within moments.
Isias has been operating since 2001, but according to scientific analysis, gravel and sand from the local river were mixed with other building materials to form the pillars that support the building.
The sheer scale of the earthquake’s building collapse has prompted widespread criticism of the Turkish government for fueling a building boom without enforcing building codes, which have been tightened after previous disasters.
