Despite the political isolation, the Syrian government received relief supplies for the people in the earthquake zone on Thursday. The United Arab Emirates has pledged the country the equivalent of 46.5 million euros. However, accusations are repeatedly made that the Syrian leadership is enriching itself with aid supplies and ignoring territories.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is largely isolated internationally and also within the Arab world. For example, Syria’s membership of the Arab League was suspended as government forces violently cracked down on protests in the country.
But that hasn’t stopped governments like those of the United Arab Emirates, Iran and Oman from sending planes with relief supplies to Damascus for the earthquake’s victims. This is reported by the Syrian state agency Sana. Aid has also come from Libya, Algeria, Russia, Armenia, India and China. The United Nations sent six trucks of goods. Further deliveries are expected.
The United Arab Emirates government has pledged $50 million each to both Syria and Turkey. The Gulf state, which wants to get closer to Damascus, also plans to send a rescue team to the civil war country.
Government criticizes Western sanctions
While reports say the Syrian leadership is constantly enriching itself with relief supplies and ignoring territories, it has criticized Western sanctions. Those of the US and EU would complicate humanitarian aid after the quake, it said. However, the Foreign Office in Berlin contradicted this statement. Food, medicine and equipment to recover buried persons are exempt from the sanctions.
The sanctions would rather be directed against the leadership and its supporters. The EU has so far pledged €3.5 million in emergency aid to the country.
90 percent of the population in the northwest of the country was already dependent on humanitarian aid before the earthquake hit Monday morning. They deal with things like malnutrition, cholera and cold. The health system is severely overloaded. Three days after the earthquake, many seriously injured people are still coming to hospitals. Many of them are hypothermic.
Source: Krone
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