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Turkey-Syria earthquakes death toll passes 20,000, worse than the Fukushima disaster
UPDATED ON: FEBRUARY 9, 2023 / 11:02 AM / CBS/AP
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WORLD
Turkey-Syria earthquakes death toll passes 20,000, worse than the Fukushima disaster
UPDATED ON: FEBRUARY 9, 2023 / 11:02 AM / CBS/AP
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Over 21,000 dead from quake in Turkey and Syria
By Tara Subramaniam, Sana Noor Haq, Ed Upright, Adrienne Vogt, Matt Meyer, Maureen Chowdhury and Tori B. Powell, CNN
Updated 8:43 p.m. ET, February 9, 2023
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Canadian crew helps rescue woman trapped in Turkey earthquake rubble for 5 days
CBC News · Posted: Feb 10, 2023 9:41 AM CST | Last Updated: 7 minutes ago
Rescuers shouted "God is great" and hugged each other on Friday after freeing a woman who was trapped for five days in the rubble of a collapsed apartment building in earthquake-ravaged Turkey.
CBC journalists were on the scene in the southeastern city of Adiyaman as the woman was pulled from the debris, fitted with an oxygen mask, placed on a stretcher and carried to an ambulance.
The woman was trapped under a door in the building in an air pocket, which allowed rescuers to talk to her and provide food and water. ...
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Twitter Blackout in Turkey amid Earthquake Rescue Operations: The Dangers of Microblogging Outages during Disasters
02/10/2023
By Anjana Susarla, Michigan State University
Twitter was blocked in Turkey on Feb. 8, 2023, according to internet monitoring service NetBlocks. The outage came amid the massive rescue operation and humanitarian crisis in the aftermath of the earthquakes in southern Turkey and northern Syria two days earlier. Access to Twitter appeared to be restored about 12 hours after it was first blocked. ...
Almost as soon as the main quake hit, thousands of eyewitnesses posted videos and photos on social media, particularly on Twitter. Such first eyewitness accounts are invaluable in helping emergency relief personnel and researchers assess the extent of damage and match aid to what’s needed on the ground.
The Twitter blackout, which was likely the result of governmental action, appeared to have impeded rescue and relief efforts. NetBlocks noted that internet service providers had been blocking traffic to Twitter, and that people could circumvent the blocking by using a virtual private network, or VPN.
...Humanitarian aid and disaster relief require real-time monitoring, almost immediately after a disaster occurs. Combining Twitter feeds with geolocation data and mapping the extracted informationmakes it possible to visualize an unfolding crisis. Responders can track the locations of damage, casualties and resources to determine how best to target relief efforts.
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I don't think this sanction relief is going to help US Syrians needing to send money to families affected by the earthquakes. A reporter asked Price about this since there is a $400 limit on sending money right now. The Treasury document doesn't seem to license those transactions. They'd have to apply individually to do that, and you can only imagine how long that might take.
Under Pressure Amid Soaring Death Toll, US Eases Syria Sanctions for Earthquake Relief
"We welcome the decision by the U.S. Department of Treasury to issue a broad General License on Syria sanctions," said one advocate.
Jake Johnson Feb 10, 2023
In the face of mounting pressure from rights groups and relief organizations on the ground, the Biden administration on Thursday issued a temporary license authorizing "all transactions related to earthquake relief that would be otherwise prohibited" by U.S. sanctions on Syria.
The move, announced by the Treasury Department on Thursday evening, amounts to a tacit admission that U.S. sanctions could have impacted the delivery of humanitarian aid to the country following the massive earthquake and dozens of aftershocks that killed more than 21,000 people in Syria and neighboring Turkey.
"As international allies and humanitarian partners mobilize to help those affected, I want to make very clear that U.S. sanctions in Syria will not stand in the way of lifesaving efforts for the Syrian people," said Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo. "While U.S. sanctions programs already contain robust exemptions for humanitarian efforts, today Treasury is issuing a blanket General License to authorize earthquake relief efforts so that those providing assistance can focus on what's needed most: saving lives and rebuilding."
The sanctions relief, which will be in effect for 180 days, came after U.S. officials repeatedly denied that the restrictions would impact humanitarian aid. Earlier Thursday, U.S. State Department spokesperson Ned Price said during a press briefing that "there are many hurdles to overcome when providing humanitarian assistance in Syria and especially after devastating earthquakes this week, but our Syrian sanctions policy is not among them."
But reporting and accounts from humanitarian leaders indicate that U.S. and European sanctions—which have long harmed Syrian civilians despite ostensibly being targeted at the Assad government—have hampered early aid and recovery efforts, compounding existing difficulties surrounding the delivery of emergency supplies to rebel-held areas of Syria. Freezing weather has also complicated aid and rescue operations.
Khaled Hboubati, the director of Syria's Red Crescent, said earlier this week that "we need heavy equipment, ambulances, and firefighting vehicles to continue to rescue and remove the rubble, and this entails lifting sanctions on Syria as soon as possible."
In a statement Tuesday, the Middle East Council of Churches called for "the immediate lifting of sanctions on Syria and allowing access to all materials, so sanctions may not turn into a crime against humanity."
The Associated Press reported that "in theory, aid operations in government areas should not be blocked by sanctions, since both the U.S. and EU have exemptions for humanitarian aid."
"But the reality on the ground is sometimes different," the outlet noted. "Banks might block transfers to pay suppliers or local workers for aid organizations for fear of running afoul of sanctions, despite the exemptions. Also, U.S. sanctions and to some extent E.U. ones try to prevent rebuilding of damaged infrastructure and property in government-held areas in the absence of a political solution, which could hamper post-earthquake recovery."
Abed Ayoub, director of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, wrote on Twitter that "we welcome the decision by the U.S. Department of Treasury to issue a broad General License on Syria sanctions."
"This will ease sanctions and allow for much-needed additional aid into the country," Ayoub added._____________________________________________
Ask Congress to Investigate COVID Origins and Government Response to Pandemic.
i love myself. the quietest. simplest. most powerful. revolution ever. ---- nayyirah waheed
"...there’s an obvious contest that’s happening between different sectors of the colonial ruling class in this country. And they would, if they could, lump us into their beef, their struggle." ---- Omali Yeshitela, African People’s Socialist Party
(My posts are not intended as advice or professional assessments of any kind.)
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WORLD
Earthquakes
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Death toll surpasses 33,000 in Turkey, Syria earthquakes as anger builds over response time: Live updates
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Source: https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/new-ea...atay-1.6754357
Another deadly earthquake further devastates hard-hit regions in Turkey, Syria
Turkish interior minister says 3 killed, hundreds injured after 6.4 magnitude quake
The Associated Press · Posted: Feb 20, 2023 12:45 PM EST | Last Updated: 1 hour ago
A new 6.4 magnitude earthquake on Monday struck parts of Turkey and Syria that were damaged two weeks ago by a massive quake that killed around 45,000 people. Officials said more buildings collapsed, trapped occupants, and several people were injured in both countries, but there were no immediate reports of fatalities.
Monday's earthquake was centered in the town of Defne, about 20 km east of Samandag in Turkey's Hatay province, one of the worst-hit regions in the magnitude 7.8 quake that hit on Feb. 6. It was felt in Syria, Jordan, Israel and as far away as Egypt, and was followed by a second, magnitude 5.8 tremor.
Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said three people were killed and 213 injured. Search and rescue efforts were underground in three collapsed buildings where a total of five people were believed trapped...Comment
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Or they were clinging to that mother cat.
Krish @Kriskant6
Ukrainian rescuers found a group of puppies in the rubble of a building. When they took a closer look, they saw that the puppies were protecting the kittens. #earthquake #earthquakeTurkey #turkey #HelpTurkey #DonateforTurkey #DonatetoTurkiye #deprem
9:31 AM · Feb 13, 2023· 512.5K Views_____________________________________________
Ask Congress to Investigate COVID Origins and Government Response to Pandemic.
i love myself. the quietest. simplest. most powerful. revolution ever. ---- nayyirah waheed
"...there’s an obvious contest that’s happening between different sectors of the colonial ruling class in this country. And they would, if they could, lump us into their beef, their struggle." ---- Omali Yeshitela, African People’s Socialist Party
(My posts are not intended as advice or professional assessments of any kind.)
Never forget Excalibur.Comment
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WHO Director-General's opening remarks at the media briefing – 3 March 2023
3 March 2023
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Yesterday I returned from my visit to Türkiye and the Syrian Arab Republic.
I was deeply shocked and saddened by the devastation and suffering I saw and heard.
In the Hatay province of Türkiye, almost every building has either collapsed, or is leaning dangerously.
I imagined how terrifying that morning must have been, in the pitch black, the rain and snow, and the awful noise of buildings collapsing and people screaming.
I visited a camp for displaced people, where I met a 67-year-old woman who was trapped under the rubble for three hours before she was rescued.
Her husband was not as fortunate. Her daughter is in hospital and may have to have a leg amputated.
She said she did not know what she will do next.
The suffering is impossible to describe in words or even in pictures. Nothing can convey the depth of grief and loss so many people are feeling.
The destruction is immense; but so is the response of the Turkish government.
During the first two weeks, more than 55,000 people needing care were transported to hospitals all over Türkiye in any way possible – by helicopter, ambulance, and car.
Since the first day, the Minister of Health has been leading the response on the ground in the most affected areas.
The entire Ministry of Health has relocated to the affected zones, and is living in tents, containers and cars, side-by-side with health workers and other responders.
I was so impressed by the dedication and hard work of health workers, both in Türkiye and the Syrian Arab Republic.
The kind of suffering caused by the earthquake on both sides is similar.
But the risks now being faced by people on the Syrian side are far higher than those living just a few kilometres away on the Turkish side.
The challenges health workers are facing are similar on both sides, but on the Syrian side they are facing them with far fewer resources.
Twelve years of war has destroyed infrastructure, homes and hope.
Drought, economic collapse, the COVID-19 pandemic and an ongoing cholera outbreak have heaped misery upon misery.
Even before the earthquake, more than 90% of the Syrian people were living in poverty.
The NGOs in the north-west of the Syrian Arab Republic welcomed my visit, but expressed their disappointment that I was the first high-level UN official to visit since the beginning of the war.
In Idlib Governate, I met a 15-year-old boy who broke both his arms when he jumped out of a window during the earthquake. He hasn’t been to school since he was nine years old, because of the conflict.
I visited a reception centre where hundreds of people are living with nothing but the clothes they were wearing when they escaped their homes.
People showed me pictures of the children they had lost.
The children who were there were dirty and hadn’t eaten that day. There is nothing for them to do. No toys, no games, no schooling.
For the past decade, WHO has been providing about one-third of medicines in opposition-controlled areas in the north-west of the Syrian Arab Republic. That has now risen to two thirds.
On the day of the earthquake, we were able to release supplies quickly from our local warehouses.
So far, we have distributed more than 200 tonnes of aid to health facilities in north-west Syria, and we continue to deliver as much aid as we can in any way we can, whether across borders or across lines of conflict.
The Syrian people have suffered more than most people ever will, or ever could. They have endured and they have shown great resilience in the face of it.
Their needs, dreams and hopes are the same as all people:
For health, food, water, shelter and peace. For a better future for their children.
I call on the international community to dig deep to lift up those in Türkiye and the Syrian Arab Republic, in two ways.
First, for humanitarian support for both countries, and to support a political solution to establish a lasting peace in the Syrian Arab Republic.
At the same time, I call on the leaders of all sides of the Syrian conflict to use the shared suffering of this crisis as a platform for peace; as an opportunity to make peace.
12 years of war has delivered nothing but division and the destruction of the Syrian Arab Republic’s proud history and rich culture.
If anything good could come of this suffering, it must be peace.
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Devastating Earthquakes in Southern Türkiye and Northern Syria, 18 May 2023, Situation Report 22
Situation Report Source IBC Posted 19 May 2023 Originally published18 May 2023
1. Developments
Three months have passed since the devastating earthquakes in Kahramanmaraş. The Ministry of Interior of the Republic of Turkey announced in its latest statement that the death toll from the earthquakes centered in Kahramanmaraş was 50,783, with 107,000 reported injuries. However, these numbers are undoubtedly under representative of the true count as there are many reports from villages where victims who lost their lives were buried without obtaining death certificates from the district prosecutor.
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While aftershocks continue to unsettle the eleven affected provinces, the demolition of heavily damaged buildings is still underway. According to the latest data from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the number of people directly affected by the earthquake in the 15.8 million population of the eleven provinces is 9.1 million.
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It is reported that the population in Kahramanmaraş, Hatay, and Adiyaman has decreased by nearly half, with 70% of the survivors from the earthquake expected to have disabilities.
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The affected population, trying to sustain their lives in tents and container cities, emphasizes that despite ongoing relief efforts, the needs are still not adequately met. Especially housing, water-sanitation-hygiene, and psychosocial support, as well as protection assistance, are needed.
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