World was slow to send aid to Syria after earthquake, says United Nations
The international community and the Syrian government did not act quickly last month to help people in need in the rebel-held northwest after a deadly earthquake hit Turkiye and Syria, a U.N. commission said Monday.
The Feb. 6 magnitude 7.8 earthquake and strong aftershocks that ravaged southern Turkiye and northwestern Syria killed more than 50,000 people, including over 6,000 in Syria.
The Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria said there should be an investigation into why it took a week to open border crossings for aid to flow.
It added that war-torn Syria now needs a comprehensive cease-fire that is fully respected for civilians, including aid workers, to be safe.
It took a week for the U.N. and Syria's President Bashar Assad's government to agree on opening two more border crossings into the rebel-held region bordering Turkiye as many people were still under the rubble.
Since the earthquake, we have seen many acts to help victims by the Syrians themselves,