David Beesley, the head of the United Nations World Food Programme, said today that he had witnessed images of “Apocalypse” during his visit to earthquake-hit areas in southern Turkey.

The powerful earthquakes of February 6, hit both Turkey and neighboring Syria, killing more than 50,000 people according to the latest reports released yesterday.

“There is only one way to describe what I saw today: Apocalypse,” Beasley said after visiting the city of Antakya in Turkey’s Hatay province.

“Entire neighborhoods have been leveled, homes destroyed, schools and shops closed, lives torn apart. The scale of the devastation here is truly unimaginable,” he said.

The official added in a statement that the situation on the Syrian side amounts to “disaster upon disaster,” referring to the past 12 years of civil war.

The WFP said Beasley visited a UN logistics hub where trucks are loaded with food and other emergency supplies before crossing into northwestern Syria.

He stressed the urgency of intensifying food deliveries to Syria “through all channels – without any restrictions” and called on “all parties to facilitate access”.

Northwest Syria, which is controlled by opposition groups at war with President Bashar al-Assad and has a population already dependent on aid for basic needs, is the worst-hit region of Syria.

The increasing aid deliveries are linked to the opening of additional crossings from Turkey into rebel-held areas.

One of them, Bab al-Hawa, was already in use under the authorization of the UN Security Council, and Assad gave permission for two more passages to be opened for three months.