By Oyintari Ben
Since the earthquake destroyed homes in Syria and neighbouring Turkey, the first UN assistance convoy has entered rebel-held northwest Syria.
Over 17,000 people have died in the two countries since Thursday, and rescuers are scurrying to find survivors in the harsh weather.
According to the UN, damage to delivery routes has prevented help from reaching the opposition stronghold in northwest Syria, where millions of people are displaced and in great need, and many live in camps.
Access to the area controlled by the rebels, which was already experiencing a humanitarian catastrophe, has been restricted by the Syrian government throughout the conflict and requires permission from the Turkish government, which oversees the Bab al-Hawa border crossing.
On Thursday, six trucks bringing aid entered northwest Syria through Turkey “shortly after noon local time,” according to Jens Laerke, spokesperson for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
He said that while a shipping centre in southern Turkey was unaffected, the quakes had damaged the delivery area’s roadways. The standard path was too damaged, so we were able to find two alternate routes on the Turkish side, he added.
We see this as a test that things can restart, Laerke remarked earlier.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan travelled to the heavily populated Gaziantep on Thursday, close to the earthquake’s epicentre that has destroyed many residential buildings in southern Turkey.
Erdogan has pleaded with the populace to be patient and promised to restore the several destroyed towns and cities within a year, a difficult task given the government’s most recent estimate of more than 6,400 collapsed structures.
He added that families would receive 10,000 Turkish lira, or about $530, from the Turkish government.
Journalists for the Washington Post in southern Turkey witnessed survivors battling for blankets and tents provided by aid organizations.
