Caroline Baudry
modified to
09:28, February 08, 2023
More than 48 hours after the first earthquake, rescuers are finishing a second night of searching in the rubble. While the provisional toll in the two affected countries, Syria and Turkey, has already reached 9,500 people who have died, NGOs are calling for the reopening of a second humanitarian corridor, particularly in Syria.
Hurry up. Two days after the major earthquake that affected the countries of the Anatolian plate, in particular Turkey and Syria, the provisional toll has risen to 9,500 dead and the situation is still catastrophic. 45 countries have already promised reinforcements to Ankara. But on the Damascus side, the call for help was mainly heard by its Russian ally. Because the regime of Bashar al-Assad has been under international sanctions since 2011. An isolation which inevitably slows down the rescue of victims.
“We must be able to overcome all political situations”
Additional problem: the earthquake hit Idlib in particular, the Syrian rebel zone to which access is severely controlled by the regime, especially on the Turkish border. The road to the only crossing point of Bab el-Haoua was damaged by the earthquake, while the delivery of tents and medical equipment is urgent, alert Raphaël Pitti, humanitarian doctor at the NGO Mehad.
“We immediately demand that there be a meeting of the Security Council and that there be a resolution allowing the reopening of a second humanitarian corridor that existed here, that of Bab el-Salam. We are faced with a situation of very large-scale disaster. We must be able to overcome all political situations or barriers. We are faced with international solidarity and it must take precedence over this solidarity”, confides the doctor. Going through the South is difficult today, despite the thousands of victims. Damascus confirmed on Monday that it wanted to control the aid sent from the interior of the country to all Syrian territories.