THE FUSE

On February 6, 2023, two earthquakes struck southern Türkiye within hours of each other and killed more than 50,000 people. While rescuers were still searching the rubble, a different explanation for the disaster spread online. The earthquakes, according to this account, were not natural. Foreign powers had caused them on purpose, using a secret weapon called HAARP. HAARP is a real atmospheric research program in Alaska. In the conspiracy theory it became a device that can set off earthquakes from a distance. One version that spread widely placed the device aboard the large foreign ships passing through the Bosphorus in Istanbul.