second aid convoy from the United Nations entered northwestern Syria, five days after the devastating earthquake occurred, according to an official at the border crossing and the International Organization for Migration, where humanitarian aid is scheduled to be distributed to needy Syrians in Idlib.
The United Nations has sent 14 trucks loaded with humanitarian aid to Idlib Governorate, northwestern Syria.
On Friday, the trucks entered the Syrian territory through the "Cilogozu" crossing in the Turkish state of Hatay.
It is scheduled that the UN humanitarian aid will be distributed to the needy Syrians in Idlib.
On Thursday, the United Nations sent 6 trucks loaded with aid to the same governorate.
The meager amount of aid, which did not enter northwestern Syria until four days after the earthquake, angers local organizations, residents and activists in the region.
"A second aid convoy from the United Nations, consisting of 14 trucks, entered a short time ago," the media official at the Bab al-Hawa border crossing between Turkey and Syria, Mazen Alloush, told AFP.
A spokesman for the International Organization for Migration of the United Nations, Paul Dillon, announced from Geneva that the second convoy contains "humanitarian supplies, solar lamps and blankets" and other needs, but it does not include foodstuffs.
The White Helmets, the civil defense organization in areas outside Damascus' control, criticized the meager aid sent by the United Nations, which does not include equipment for search and rescue teams.
Humanitarian aid destined for northwestern Syria is usually transported from Turkey through Bab al-Hawa, the only crossing point guaranteed by a Security Council resolution on cross-border aid.
The devastation resulting from the earthquake, which was centered in Turkey, affected five Syrian governorates, claiming the lives of more than 22,000 people in Syria and Turkey, including more than 3,300 in Syria.
At dawn on Monday, a 7.7-magnitude earthquake hit southern Turkey and northern Syria, followed hours later by another with a magnitude of 7.6 and dozens of aftershocks, leaving huge losses of lives and property in both countries.
During his meeting with a UN official Oktay: We are closely following the search and rescue work
Turkish Vice President Fuad Oktay confirmed, during his meeting with the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Martin Griffiths, that his country's authorities are following up on search and rescue work, and that they are seeking to rebuild the buildings within a year.
On Friday, Turkish Vice President Fuad Oktay met with the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Martin Griffiths, in the capital, Ankara.
He received Oktay Griffiths (holding the position of Emergency Relief Coordinator) at the General Headquarters of the Turkish Disaster and Emergency Management "AFAD".
Oktay pointed out that the Turkish authorities are closely following the search and rescue work in the areas affected by the earthquake, and are in constant contact with them and are aware of the progress, moment by moment.
He stressed that the Turkish authorities plan to rebuild the demolished buildings within a year, while providing all forms of support to those affected, including shelter and covering temporary housing expenses such as rent and basic needs.
In turn, the UN official pointed out that Turkey is running the largest and most extensive search and rescue operation in the world, and that it shows a clear distinction from other countries in its administrative and organizational capabilities for those operations.
He explained that the United Nations will launch international appeals to help Turkey in its ordeal, and that the Turkey earthquake (7.7 degrees) is greater than the 2021 Haiti earthquake (7.2 degrees, which claimed the lives of about two thousand people).
The two sides also discussed the consequences of the earthquake in the neighboring countries of Turkey.
At dawn on Monday, a 7.7-magnitude earthquake hit southern Turkey and northern Syria, followed hours later by another with a magnitude of 7.6 and hundreds of violent aftershocks, which left huge losses of lives and property in both countries.
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