The row of pistachio-green houses stands out against the empty land, surrounded only by a few buildings. Mehmet Ak welcomes us inside with joy. It’s small but practical. “There will be mint, parsley and garlic here, and tomatoes behind,” Mehmet tells The New Arab, showing his soon-to-be garden in front of his little house. He moved in mid-November after living in a tent for nine months after his house was damaged by the earthquake that hit south of Turkey on February 6, 2023. “In March 2023, the government estimated that 230,000 buildings were now ‘unusable’ in the 11 provinces affected. Some …