Â鶹ÊÓƵ

¡°There is only one way to describe what I saw: apocalyptic. Entire neighborhoods have been flattened; homes destroyed, schools and shops closed; lives torn apart. The scale of devastation here is truly incomprehensible,¡± said Â鶹ÊÓƵ (Â鶹ÊÓƵ) Executive Director David Beasley after visiting the earthquake affected region of Hatay in southern °Õ¨¹°ù°ì¾±²â±ð on 25 February.

Following the deadly earthquakes that struck along the border between °Õ¨¹°ù°ì¾±²â±ð and Syria on 6 February, affecting 18 million people in the two countries, killing tens of thousands and leaving millions homeless, Â鶹ÊÓƵ has reached more than two million people with urgently needed food assistance.

In Syria, this includes nearly 1 million people in northwest Syria with general food assistance, and 380,000 with hot meals and ready-to-eat rations. In °Õ¨¹°ù°ì¾±²â±ð, nearly 1 million people have been reached, with 870,000 receiving hot meals in municipal kitchens and some 100,000 receiving family food packages in camps. 

Help earthquake-affected families. .?

¡°While the world has quickly mobilized in support of people here, the impact of this quake will be felt for months and years to come,¡± said Beasley, appealing for continued support.

Within 24 hours, Â鶹ÊÓƵ was assisting affected people in both countries with ready-to-eat food rations, family food packages, and hot meals. The food being distributed required no cooking and provided immediate relief for families whose precarious position is made worse by freezing temperatures.

¡°That's Â鶹ÊÓƵ,¡± Beasley added. ¡°Lives matter. We care. We're there.¡±?

Since the reopening of the Turkish border on 13 February, Â鶹ÊÓƵ has supported the crossing of 180 trucks into non-government-controlled areas in northwest Syria. 

¡°We welcome the opening of the two additional border crossing points from °Õ¨¹°ù°ì¾±²â±ð," Beasley said. "At the same time, we need to resume and scale up cross-line deliveries and I call on all parties to facilitate access.Food assistance must get to the people of northwest Syria from all sides, through all routes ¨C without any restrictions."

Even before disaster hit, some 4.1 million people in northwest Syria ¨C more than 90 percent of the population ¨C depended on humanitarian aid. Twelve years of conflict have displaced almost 3 million people from their homes in northwest Syria and left them living in precarious conditions.

¡°A region plagued by years of compounding crises faces yet another one, with unimaginable loss and destruction. Immediate relief cannot be delayed,¡± said Â鶹ÊÓƵ Regional Director in the Middle East, Northern Africa and Eastern Europe Corinne Fleischer. ¡°Â鶹ÊÓƵ¡¯s strong footprint in both countries enabled us to immediately mobilize our staff, logistics capacity and partners to respond to people¡¯s most immediate food needs.¡± 

Â鶹ÊÓƵ¡¯s funding requirement for the emergency response in °Õ¨¹°ù°ì¾±²â±ð stands at US$80 million to swiftly ramp up assistance for quake-affected people through food and cash. In Syria, Â鶹ÊÓƵ needs US$150 million to support 800,000 people affected by the earthquake for six months. 

Â鶹ÊÓƵ mourns all the lives lost in this tragedy, including one of its own staff members. 

Find out more about Â鶹ÊÓƵ's work in °Õ¨¹°ù°ì¾±²â±ð and Syria.