The death toll from the earthquake in the eastern Mediterranean, which struck Turkey and Syria, continues to rise, reaching about 22,000 dead and tens of thousands injured.
In Turkey, Turkish Vice President Fuad Aktay said Thursday evening that the death toll has risen to 17,674, while the death toll in Syria has risen to about 4,000, bringing the temporary total number of dead in the two countries to about 21,674.
Syrians pay the price of politicizing the earthquake
According to Aktay, during a press conference from the headquarters of the Turkish Emergency and Disaster Agency “AFAD” in the capital, Ankara, at the end of the fourth day of the disaster, the number of injured people reached about 73,000, compared to 5,000 in Syria, bringing the total number of victims to 78,000. .
It is noteworthy that a violent earthquake struck southern Turkey and northern Syria at dawn on Monday, with a magnitude of 7.7, 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.
Syria is crying out… the most popular hashtag on communication platforms
American aid and the World Bank
Yesterday, Thursday, the United States announced the allocation of $85 million as urgent humanitarian aid for those affected by the earthquake in Syria and Turkey.
The US Treasury Department issued a license allowing all transactions related to earthquake relief that were prohibited under the Syria sanctions regulations for a period of 180 days.
The World Bank also announced the provision of $1.7 billion in aid to Turkey to help it overcome the effects of the earthquake.
“We are providing immediate assistance and preparing a rapid assessment of the immediate and massive field needs. This will allow us to identify priority areas for the recovery and reconstruction of the country as we prepare operations to address these needs,” World Bank President David Malpass said in a statement.
Aid to Syria.. by air, land and sea
The total value of this assistance consists of $780 million provided by emergency response components for two projects already in Turkey.
The World Bank stated that this “assistance will be used to rebuild basic infrastructure at the local level.”
One billion dollars will be provided “in support of the affected individuals, with the World Bank providing immediate support for recovery and reconstruction after this disaster.”
The big earthquake.. the time is oxygen