The United Nations condemned the failure to deliver urgently needed aid to war-torn regions of Syria, while indicating that the death toll of more than 33,000 from the earthquake that also hit Turkey is set to rise far higher.
UN relief head Martin Griffiths said that much more was required for the millions of people whose houses had been devastated despite the fact that a convoy of supplies for northwest Syria had arrived via Turkey.
“We have so far failed the people in northwest Syria. They rightly feel abandoned. Looking for international help that hasn’t arrived,” Griffiths said on Twitter.
When assessing the devastation in southern Turkey on Saturday (February 11), when the death toll was at 28,000, Griffiths had told Sky News that he predicted the death toll to “double or more” as the chances of locating survivors dwindled with every passing day.
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Supplies have taken a long time to reach Syria, where the country’s healthcare system has been devastated by years of war and where rebels fighting President Bashar al-government, Assad’s which is subject to Western sanctions, still hold sway in certain regions.
An AFP journalist said that a 10-truck UN convoy entered northwest Syria through the Bab al-Hawa border crossing with shelter kits that included plastic sheeting, ropes, screws, and nails in addition to blankets, beds, and carpets.
After nearly 12 years of civil conflict, only Bab al-Hawa stays available for humanitarian aid to reach residents in rebel-held regions of Syria after other crossings were shut down as a result of pressure from China and Russia.
When Assad and the head of the World Health Organization met on Sunday in Damascus, Assad expressed his willingness for more border crossings to assist get aid into the rebel-held northwest.
(With inputs from agencies)
