Riyadh: The eleventh Saudi relief plane on Thursday, arrived at Gaziantep Airport in the Turkish Republic, carrying 88 tons of food baskets, shelter, and medical materials on board, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.
This comes within the framework of the Saudi relief air bridge operated by the King Salman Center for Relief and Humanitarian Action, under the directives of King Salman bin Abdulaziz and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
The 11th relief flight was preceded by ten similar flights, two to the Syrian airport of Aleppo and eight to Turkey, according to previous announcements made by the agency since the earthquake.
On February 6, the earthquake struck southeastern Turkey and northern Syria with a magnitude of 7.7, followed hours later by another with a magnitude of 7.6 and dozens of aftershocks, which left great losses in lives and property in both countries.
To support Turkey and Syria in the disaster, more than 16 Arab countries announced the establishment of air bridges, the provision of urgent relief and medical aid, and the launch of campaigns to donate funds and in-kind supplies.
Guwahati: An earthquake of 3.9 magnitude hit Meghalaya on Thursday, the third such incident in the northeast in a span of a week.
A report by the National Center for Seismology report also said that the epicenter of the latest quake, recorded at 9.26 am, lay in East Khasi Hills at a depth of 46 km.
The impact of the quake was felt in Shillong, the district headquarters of East Khasi Hills district, Ri-Bhoi and parts of Assam’s Kamrup Metropolitan district.
There was no immediate report of any injury or damage to any property.
The two quakes that were reported last Sunday and Monday, of 4 and 3.2 magnitude respectively, had epicenters near Hojai in Central Assam.
The northeastern region falls in a high seismic zone, with earthquakes occurring frequently recorded there.
Manila: An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6 rocked the Philippines on Thursday morning, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said.
The institute said the quake, which occurred at 2:10 a.m. local time, hit at a depth of 10 km, about 11 km southwest of Batuan town in Masbate province on the main island of Luzon, Xinhua news agency reported.
The quake was also felt in several areas in Luzon and central Philippines, including Legazpi City in Albay province, Sorsogon, Northern Samar, Negros Occidental, and Southern Leyte, the institute said.
There are no reports of damage or casualties.
The US Geological Survey put the earthquake’s magnitude at 6.1 and a depth of 20 km.
The Philippines has frequent seismic activity due to its location along the Pacific “Ring of Fire”.
Ruqaya Mohammed Mustafa stood next to her few remaining neighbours and the heaped piles they once called home and wearily welcomed the first visitors she had seen since the earthquake last week.
All this time, she and the people of Jindires, in northern Syria, had been begging for help. First to dig survivors from the rubble, then to provide shelter and food in the cruel grip of winter.
“Where was the world when it mattered?” asked Ruqaya, 58, flanked by the remains of buildings where up to 80 people had died. “Why tell our stories when there’s nothing left?”
As aid bosses travelled to regime-held Damascus and Aleppo, desperation in opposition-held north-west Syria had turned to anger, then grief. “We realised there was nothing coming for us,” Ruqaya said. “We dug the bodies out with our bare hands. Those we couldn’t reach died.”
With no one now left alive under the devastation in Jindires, a scramble is under way to source life-saving supplies. Not for the first time, residents of northern Syria feel forgotten – by a world inured to their suffering after more than a decade of civil war, and by unresponsive global bodies that defer to political process.
Devastation in the town of Jindires. Photograph: Ghaith Alsayed/AP
A UN announcement on Monday that it had won the approval of the Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad, to open border crossings into the opposition-held north-west drew particular scorn.
Jindires was home to displaced people from all corners of Syria, especially those who had defied Assad and been forced into exile as a result. Tareq Aamer was one of them. “Assad is worse than the earthquake,” he said. “And the UN is killing us more by its policy towards Bashar. We don’t need to wait for them to open the borders. They are already open. Why are people asking for their permission?”
The first non-scheduled aid convoy crossed the border at Bab al-Salam on Tuesday carrying tents, medicines and blankets – a speck in the collective needs of a province ravaged by more suffering over the past decade than most other places in the Middle East.
Mouaz Moustafa, the executive director of the Syrian Emergency Task Force, said the UN announcement was redundant and drew on narrow and bitterly contested interpretations of international law.
“The Assad regime has no right to be the ultimate authority on the fate of millions of civilians in non-regime-held areas of Syria,” he said. “The UN doesn’t need a [security council] resolution for cross-border humanitarian assistance, yet it is allowing Assad to be the only representative of the people he has oppressed for 12 years.”
Food is distributed to earthquake survivors in Jindires. Photograph: Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
Ali Bakr, 60, was also demanding help for residents of Jinderes – the few still alive that he knew. Out of 18 members of his family, only one had survived, he said. “I need mental help to calm my nerves. I dug the bodies out with my own hands.”
Next to him stood Omran Sido, 36, whose three children, aged four months, six and eight, all died in the same building. “How will I ever recover from this?” he said. “It’s made worse by knowing that no one else cares.”
Along the road to Jindires, near the city of Afrin, a convoy of trucks carrying aid from Saudi Arabia had parked up. Flags announcing Qatari deliveries flew nearby. NGOs active inside the province have also distributed relief from pre-existing stockpiles.
But the piecemeal global response and readiness, even now, to defer to Assad hangs a pall over the region. “I went to Ukraine and saw UN cars every five metres,” said one resident – one of few with permission to cross into neighbouring Turkey and travel beyond. “I understand what they’ve been through. But so have we, and we continue to.”
A scene in Jindires, Aleppo province, on Tuesday. Photograph: Ghaith Alsayed/AP
In hospitals, medicines and morale are running low. Afrin hospital, one of the region’s biggest, received 750 patients, many of them badly injured or dying, in the hours after the earthquakes. Many were children, up to 15 of whom required amputations. “They are the most difficult things to perform,” said Wadan al-Nasr, who performed most of the surgeries. “Not technically, but because of what they represent.”
Three-year-old Nour clings to an inflated glove. Photograph: Celine Kasem
In a nearby ward, three-year-old Nour lay sleeping, her one remaining leg covered by a blanket. Her other leg had been amputated in the rubble of the family home, where her mother and siblings had died. Her father came to visit her most days, and her comfort in between was a hand-shaped balloon. Nour’s tiny hand held one of its fingers.
In a sports hall, Wahid Khalil had bunkered down with what remained of his family. His young daughter was listless and feverish. A young doctor in a white coat rushed her away amid crowds of men and women who wandered slowly around their makeshift home. A little while later, the girl returned with a lollipop and a cup of medicine, a rare glimpse of hope after a dark week.
But elsewhere there was little to celebrate. “The countries that claim humanitarian rights are paramount, where are they?” asked Aamer, back in Jindires. “They end up exploiting our suffering. They seem to care about animal rights more than humanitarian rights.
“This earthquake will give up more bodies, when we can get to them,” he said. “But this regime has many more secrets that need uncovering. The Russians have tested 400 weapons on us and turned us into lab rats. It’s misery on top of suffering. The world must help us rebuild and it needs to learn the lessons of history. Assad is not your friend.”
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( With inputs from : www.theguardian.com )
The United Nations said that more than seven million children were affected by the devastating earthquake that struck in southern Turkey and northwestern Syria on Monday and also expressed concern over the killing of “several thousand” others.
“In Turkey, the total number of affected children in the 10 provinces hit by the two earthquakes is 4.6 million. In Syria, 2.5 million children are affected,” James Elder, a spokesman for the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), told reporters in Geneva on Tuesday.
“UNICEF fears that several thousand children will be killed,” Elder added.
He warned that “even without verifying the numbers, it is tragically clear that the numbers will continue to increase.” Elder feared the final outcome would be “mind-boggling”.
He expressed his fears that, given the “catastrophic and ever-increasing death toll, it is clear that many children will lose their parents in these devastating earthquakes.”
On February 6, a 7.7-magnitude earthquake hit southern Turkey and northern Syria, followed by another with a magnitude of 7.6 hours later.
Turkish chef Nusret Gökçe, popularly known as Salt Bae
Salt Bae, the popular chef and social media personality, has made headlines for his philanthropic efforts following a devastating earthquake in Turkey. Seeing the suffering of the earthquake survivors, Gokce decided to arrange a mobile kitchen that could serve 5,000 people a day.
The video of the mobile kitchen with his name on the side packing up and heading out from a warehouse quickly went viral. However, some people criticized Salt Bae for posting close-up and slow-motion shots of the kitchen, suggesting it was a publicity stunt. Nonetheless, most people applauded his efforts and praised him for his charitable work.
Upon arriving in the disaster zone, Salt Bae and his team of chefs worked tirelessly to prepare bulk meals in large cauldrons and containers. The survivors lined up in the freezing cold outside the lorry, eagerly waiting to receive their hot meals. Salt Bae and his team served meals to people of all ages, spreading hope and kindness during a time of darkness.
Despite the mixed reactions on social media, Salt Bae’s efforts have been celebrated by many people who have been inspired by his charitable work.
Turkish chef Nusret Gökçe, popularly known as Salt Bae
Salt Bae, the popular chef and social media personality, has made headlines for his philanthropic efforts following a devastating earthquake in Turkey. Seeing the suffering of the earthquake survivors, Gokce decided to arrange a mobile kitchen that could serve 5,000 people a day.
The video of the mobile kitchen with his name on the side packing up and heading out from a warehouse quickly went viral. However, some people criticized Salt Bae for posting close-up and slow-motion shots of the kitchen, suggesting it was a publicity stunt. Nonetheless, most people applauded his efforts and praised him for his charitable work.
Upon arriving in the disaster zone, Salt Bae and his team of chefs worked tirelessly to prepare bulk meals in large cauldrons and containers. The survivors lined up in the freezing cold outside the lorry, eagerly waiting to receive their hot meals. Salt Bae and his team served meals to people of all ages, spreading hope and kindness during a time of darkness.
Despite the mixed reactions on social media, Salt Bae’s efforts have been celebrated by many people who have been inspired by his charitable work.
An eight-year-old girl Khadija Ahmed in Hyderabad has sold her three poems to 10 persons and raised Rs 3000 to donate the money for the earthquake affected people in Turkey.
She was shaken by the news of the killings and damages pouring in from Turkey. She wanted to help the victims and hit upon an idea of her own.
When asked by this Siasat.com correspondent what her meager contribution would do for the victims who have lost lives, homes and everything they had she narrated a story.
“My parents had told me a story. It was about Prophet Ibrahim (Abraham). His enemy raised a massive fire as he wanted to throw him into the flames and kill him. There was this little bird that heard about the plans of that enemy and began flying with a drop of water in its beak. On her way someone asked the bird what would you do with that drop of water. The bird replied that it would pour it on the fire. The onlooker who was surprised with the answer asked what difference that one drop of water would make. When God will ask me what you did to help my prophet I would tell Him that I did not remain a silent spectator. I dropped water to put out the flames.”
Khadija said she has been inspired by this story of the little bird.
Khadija, daughter of Kaleem Ahmed and Sumaiyah Syed, studies at Oakridge International School located in Gachibowli.
She is a grade three student who spends most of her free time in reading, painting and listening to music. Public speaking is another area where she takes interest. Her favourite author is J K Rowling.
When the Wind brought sorrow, Destroying homes and families.
The Wind asked if it would be the families he would borrow, But the people said, ‘No!’ ‘It can be anything except our people, our fantasies.’
But the Wind laughed wickedly, and said, “I do not listen to filthy things like you. “So hurry along, before I destroy your kids in their cosy beds!” And the people knew, that whatever wind said was always true.
So they did whatever Wind said, And Wind was to rule the Earth, always in everyone’s and his lifetime.
And sometimes, Wind was so dangerous that people used to be scared covered in their beds, Some say he might die out of anger in time!
Some say he will die a vain death, While others say that’s not true. Some say while he dies he will have no wealth, But many say he will come in different souls and be YOU!
Gaziantep: The massive 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria not only left bustling neighbourhoods in ruins but also destroyed the 2,000-year-old Gaziantep Castle from the Roman Empire, a historic site and tourist attraction in Turkey.
The Gaziantep castle, located in the heart of the city fell, quite literally, during the earthquake that struck in the early hours of February 6.
The death toll from the calamity has, so far, crossed 36,000.
The castle, which stood strong and remained intact even in the face of invasion and conquest, was destroyed after more than two millennia by the devastating earthquake.
Terming the incident ‘unfortunate’, Ahmad, a local of Gaziantep told ANI, “We are very sad because of the earthquake, this historical palace has been destroyed.”
Locals in Gaziantep said the castle, more than 2000 years old, was built for surveillance in the city. The Roman king got it constructed in the 2nd and 3rd centuries. It was further developed during the time of the Byzantine emperor Justinian. After this, its present form came into existence. Earlier it was used by the army of the Roman Empire. Later it was developed into a memorial for the brave.
Another local Mohammad told ANI, “This palace is our pride but the earthquake destroyed it. i hope it will be restored to its original state again.”
Due to the powerful earthquake in Turkey, the walls of this castle cracked and then fell. The castle broke into two parts. According to the Video, “the iron railing built around the castle also fell. Apart from this, big cracks were also seen in the floor of the castle.”
With Turkey still counting its dead and struggling to come to terms with the scale of the tragedy, India and many other countries came forward to help.
Under ‘Operation Dost’, India is helping Turkey in the earthquake-affected area and conducting search and rescue operations. To save trapped survivors trapped under of rubble of collapsed concrete, the Indian Army has also established 60 Para Field Hospitals in Turkey.
New Delhi had also dispatched the seventh flight to Turkey. The Indian Air Force C17 carrying relief material, medical aid, emergency and critical care medicines, medical equipment, and consumables took off from Hindon Airbase in Uttar Pradesh’s Ghaziabad.
EAM S Jaishankar also took to his Twitter handle to inform of the flight departing from Ghaziabad.
He tweeted, “The 7th #OperationDost flight departs for Syria and Turkiye. Flight is carrying relief material, medical aid, emergency & critical care medicines, medical equipment & consumables.”
According to the Ministry of External Affairs, the flight is carrying more than 35 tons of relief material, of which over 23 tons is headed for relief efforts in Syria, and around 12 tons to Turkey.
