It has now been reported that more than 35,000 people have died as a result of the devastating earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria, and the search and rescue teams are gradually winding down their operations. As of yesterday, according to AFP, 31643 people had died in Turkey and 3,581 people in Syria since last Monday's earthquake, bringing the total number of confirmed deaths in Turkey and Syria to 35,224 since last Monday's earthquake of 7.8 magnitude.
On Monday, the UN's chief humanitarian aid officer, Martin Griffiths, told a crowd in Aleppo, in northern Syria, that the rescue phase of the humanitarian crisis is "coming to an end" and the focus is now on providing shelter, food, and psychosocial care to the survivors.
- What is most striking here is that, even in Aleppo, which has suffered so much these years, this earthquake is about the worst thing that these people have experienced - added Griffiths. There was also a mention by the UN official that the UN would send aid from regions of Syria controlled by the government to areas controlled by the rebels in the northwestern part of the country.
UNICEF reports
UNICEF reported that thousands of children have lost their families as a result of this earthquake, and that homes, schools, and hospitals have all been destroyed. UNICEF stressed that the organization is actively working to identify children separated from their parents and unaccompanied children and to reunite families in Turkey and Syria.
According to them, the displaced families in northern Syria are in a particularly hard situation, because they have suffered for decades as a result of war conflicts. It is difficult for them to cope with cholera and heavy rain and snow at the same time.
Families of Syrian refugees live in improvised settlements in Turkey as well as the cholera epidemic. A lot of help is coming in from all corners of the globe right now as the situation is really chaotic at the moment. As a result, many people donated to this cause, and both financially and humanly, because saving one life is like saving the entire universe.