The Syrian regime is opening two additional border crossings with Turkey to allow more aid. The United Nations can use the routes for at least three months to help earthquake victims in northwestern Syria. Just across the border, in Turkish Hatay, Dutch aid workers rescued a thirteen-year-old girl on Monday evening.
The UN was only able to use one border crossing so far. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres welcomes the decision of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, because aid in the disaster area is slowing down, partly because of this.
Al-Assad considers the delivery of aid through the Syrian border without her approval a violation of sovereignty. That led to major delays. It was not until thousands of residents had already been rescued in Turkey that the green light was given for the first aid deliveries in Syria.
In addition, information about the situation in Syria is incomplete. The Syrian government only reports the deaths in the areas it controls.
A large part of the affected area in Syria is in the hands of various rebel groups. They have been fighting against the government army since 2011 and consider the areas they control to be independent of the Assad government. As a result, government agencies cannot enter those areas to count victims.
A week after the devastating earthquakes, the rescue efforts are almost coming to an end. The chance that survivors will be found under the rubble has decreased considerably and several search teams have already left. Emergency aid organizations are increasingly focusing on providing shelter, food and psychological help.
Dutch team saves girl who was under rubble for more than a week
Yet people are still being saved. For example, a Dutch rescue dog team managed to retrieve a 13-year-old girl found alive from under the rubble. That happened in the Turkish region of Hatay.
A spokesperson for the Rescue Dogs Foundation RHWW says that a recovery team pulled the girl from under the rubble after a clue from the dogs. “A scent trail was picked up and then salvagers took action,” said the spokesman. He couldn’t say exactly how long the girl had been under the rubble. According to Broadcasting Gelderland it is 184 hours, or more than a week.
In total, almost thirty people and eighteen dogs traveled to the area in eastern Turkey, which was hit hard by the earthquakes. They stay in tents near a stadium. It was previously announced that the rescue dogs of the Signi foundation had so far found about thirty deceased persons.
