Painful scenes from Syria
Turkey earthquake
The devastating earthquake, which claimed the lives of more than 2,992 victims in Syria, brought back the humiliation of the dilemma of delivering humanitarian aid to the country, which has always been a crucial link between the regime and the opposition.
With the rescue operations floundering amid a shortage of aid and relief equipment, the rescue teams in northern Syria warned of the seriousness of the situation, stressing that every hour of delay in delivering aid to the area shaken by the earthquake, at dawn last Monday, would result in 50 deaths.
The human tragedy also prompted the demand for the opening of the crossings to deliver aid to those trapped under the rubble and those left in the open as a result of the disaster, but this step has international arrangements.
Regime, opposition and sanctions
The Syrian regime accuses the sanctions of obstructing efforts to deal with the earthquake in the affected governorates, as the head of the Higher Committee for Relief in Syria, Hussein Makhlouf, confirmed that his country is not prepared for such disasters.
In a press conference broadcast on the Syrian regime’s television, he said that the sanctions imposed on his country hindered efforts to deal with the earthquake in the affected governorates.
He also considered that the sanctions “caused the state’s inability to compensate for the lack of mechanisms that would have enabled it to face the repercussions of the earthquake.”
While the opposition considers that the lifting of sanctions means once again enabling the Syrian regime to re-impose its control over the country.
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America intervenes
Faced with this situation, the US State Department announced in a statement on Wednesday that the sanctions do not target humanitarian aid and allow it in all of Syria.
She added that she is moving quickly to provide aid to those affected by the earthquake in northwestern Syria, explaining that the provision of aid to all areas will be according to the needs assessment.
In a related context, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken stressed on Wednesday that the scale of the loss of life as a result of the earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria, which claimed the lives of more than 13,000 people, is “truly shocking and horrific.”
He stated that the United States had deployed more than 150 search and rescue personnel to Turkey, and that Washington would have more to announce in
The coming days on how you will continue to support the Turkish and Syrian people as they recover from the devastation.
He also added that he did not know whether there were US contacts with the regime government in Syria after the earthquake.
The door of passion
As for the field, a source in the Civil Defense in Idlib stressed to Al-Arabiya that he was waiting for aid and only got promises.
He added the number of deaths is increasing every hour.
The administration of the Bab al-Hawa crossing stated that no international aid has arrived through the crossing until now.
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She pointed out that the Turkish side had promised to open the crossing, noting that all roads leading to the crossing are passable.
A source in the administration confirmed that the crossing received the bodies of the victims, not the aid.
international assistance
In turn, the World Health Organization confirmed on Wednesday that bad weather and the fuel crisis are hampering search and rescue efforts in Syria.
The organization also made it clear in a report it published on its account dedicated to Syria on Twitter that the harsh winter and extremely cold temperatures impede search and rescue efforts and the provision of shelter.
She added that the ongoing fuel crisis also hampered post-earthquake response efforts, stressing the urgent need for new resources.
On Wednesday, the European Commission said that the regime in Syria had asked for assistance from the European Union for the first time, so that the latter announced that it would provide additional emergency support to the two affected countries, referring to Turkey and Syria.
He added that urgent humanitarian aid worth 6.5 million euros will go into one of the largest search and rescue operations in the bloc under the civil protection mechanism.
Janiz Lenarcic, Crisis Management Officer at the European Commission, explained, “This morning we received a request for assistance from the Syrian government through the Civil Protection Mechanism.”
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Lenarcic told reporters that there is encouragement for EU member states to contribute aid to meet this demand.
An EU official said the 27-nation bloc would need sufficient safeguards to ensure that aid provided reaches those in need and that any future EU assistance would not go unchecked.
In a related context, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken stressed on Wednesday that the scale of the loss of life as a result of the earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria, which claimed the lives of more than 13,000 people, is “truly shocking and horrific.”
He stated that the United States had deployed more than 150 search and rescue personnel to Turkey, and that Washington would have more to announce in
The coming days on how you will continue to support the Turkish and Syrian people as they recover from the devastation.
The only crossing point
It is noteworthy that the earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria, at dawn on Monday, doubled the challenge faced by humanitarian organizations to help the Syrian people, especially in the Idlib governorate, which is controlled by the opposition factions in the northwest of the country.
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The bulk of the humanitarian aid allocated to the northwest of the country is transported from Turkey through Bab al-Hawa, the only crossing point guaranteed by the UN Security Council resolution.
While the United Nations has repeatedly stressed in recent years that the transfer of aid across the front lines – which requires the approval of the regime – is not sufficient to meet the needs of the population in northwestern Syria.
