Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks to people as he visits the site of a collapsed building in Istanbul, Saturday, Feb. 9, 2019. Erdogan says there are “many lessons to learn” from the collapse of a residential building in Istanbul where at least 17 people have died. (Presidential Press Service via AP, Pool) (Associated Press)ISTANBUL — Turkey’s president was among hundreds of mourners who attended the funeral Saturday for nine members of a family killed in the apartment building collapse in Istanbul as the overall death toll increased to 17. Recep Tayyip Erdogan and other officials joined the funeral prayers for the Alemdar family following the president’s first visit to the site of Wednesday’s tragedy. The cause of Wednesday’s collapse is under investigation but officials have said the top three floors of the eight-story building in the Kartal district were built illegally.

Source: Washington Post February 09, 2019 09:24 UTC