In the aftermath of the strongest earthquake to hit their country in over a decade, the government of Turkey has reportedly refused international assistance.

With their bare hands and heavy machineries, the Turkish people pulled on debris and dug on rubble to find more survivors on Sunday's 7.2 magnitude earthquake.

The death toll from the quake is already at 279, according to the prime minister's office, while an estimated 1,300 people have been injured.

According to JTA.org, Turkey has rejected an offer to assist in the midst of quake crisis from Israel.

JTA published the following statement from the Israeli president, reportedly delivered on Sunday:

"The State of Israel shares in your sorrow following the earthquake that has claimed victims from among your people. I speak as a man, as a Jew and as an Israeli who remembers, and is well aware of the depth of the historic relations between our two peoples, and thus I send the condolences of the entire nation to the families of those who lost their lives. At this difficult time, the State of Israel is ready to render any assistance that may be required anywhere in Turkey, at any time."

Gul reportedly expressed his gratitude for the offer but said he hoped Turkish officials and nationals would be able to work on the rescue and recovery efforts on their own.

However, Bulent Arinc, the deputy prime minister, said in a news conference that was broadcast nationally, that Turkey is rejecting any international assistance, specifically not from the Israeli government.

"It would have been highly inappropriate and unpleasant to refuse the offer by the Israeli government. Nobody should even think about such a thing," he said.

The 2010 Israeli navy raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla that resulted in the death of eight Turks and a Turkish-American is reportedly behind the Turkish government's refusal to accept Israeli help now.

The hardest-hit areas are the city of Ercis to the east and Van province to the south. Major roads in these areas have been badly ruined, while flights were diverted from Van's airport due to quake damages, too.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has inspected the hardest hit areas, said "close to all" the mud-brick homes in affected villages had collapsed in the quake aftermath.

"Normally quakes happen 30 to 40 kilometers deep -- this is less than 10 kilometers, therefore there will be more damage," Mustafa Erdik, head of the Kandilli observatory, said in televised comments.

The survivors have experienced an estimated 200 aftershocks since the preliminary quake on Sunday.

As this developed, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee has started its fund raising efforts to help the earthquake victims and send assistance as soon as possible.