DAMASC, 9 February. At the end of yesterday, the number of people who died and tens of thousands were injured exceeded 21,000 in the magnitude 7.8 earthquake that rocked Turkey early Monday morning and Syria, and the number is set to rise significantly. higher as search and rescue efforts continue, and there are fears that even among survivors, as aid agencies warn that snowfall is falling in affected areas where water, communications and power are in short supply, potentially causing a “secondary disaster”.

This Thursday, a UN aid convoy managed to cross Syria’s northwestern border for the first time, as Western sanctions against the Syrian people and the government of Bashar al-Assad impede or complicate the effort.

For his part, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan acknowledged that the state’s response to the disaster was not enough, but insisted the situation was now “under control,” CNN reported. Ankara has received offers of assistance from some 95 countries and 16 international organizations, and so far 6,479 rescuers from 56 countries are already at the crash site and awaiting teams from 19 other countries in the next few hours. Aid has flowed to Turkey since the first event on Monday, but not to Syria, where the situation is more difficult due to sanctions and a 12-year war.

On the other hand, the tragedy is being exacerbated in both Turkey and Syria due to sub-zero degrees Celsius temperatures, considered much colder than usual in the quake-hit region, also making rescue efforts difficult. survival.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said this ambulance caravan in Syria has six trucks full of supplies to accommodate those who have lost their homes and who have entered through the Bab al-Hawa humanitarian corridor from Turkey and hopes this operation will continue.

Source: Juventud Rebelde