Latest earthquake news in Turkey and Syria: Survivor rescues continue a week after the quake

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3 mins ago

US Ambassador Urges UN Security Council to Approve More Aid Access Points for Syria

By Richard Roth

US Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield on Sunday urged the UN Security Council to approve two additional access points to deliver aid to parts of Syria hit by last week's deadly earthquake. .

"People in the affected areas are counting on us. They are calling on our common humanity to help in their time of need," Thomas-Greenfield said in a statement.

"We cannot let them down; we must immediately vote on a resolution to heed the UN call for the authorization of additional border crossings for the delivery of humanitarian assistance. We have the power to act. It is time to act with urgency and purpose."

The delivery of urgent supplies to earthquake-affected areas in northern Syria has been complicated by a longstanding civil war between opposition forces and the Syrian government, led by President Bashar al-Assad, accused of kill his own people.

Russia, which backs the Assad regime, has previously blocked approval of another aid route to Syria at the UN.

The UN Emergency Relief Coordinator stressed on Sunday the need to "open up more access points" so that help can arrive faster.

Meanwhile, the head of the White Helmets volunteer group urged the UN to act outside the Security Council to open three crossings for emergency aid.

6 mins ago

European Union Commission chief pledges additional support for Turkey after call with President Erdogan

By Niamh Kennedy and Sharon Braithwaite

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen speaks during a press conference at the European Council building in Brussels, Belgium, on February 10.

(Kenzo Tribouillard/AFP/Getty Images)

The head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has vowed to bolster aid to Turkey as the country grapples with the aftermath of last Monday's devastating earthquake.

In a phone call on Sunday, von der Leyen told Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan that "the Commission will mobilize additional support and respond to Turkey's latest request for more shelter capacity, in particular tents, blankets, heaters," according to a European Union reading of the call.

Von der Leyen conveyed his "deepest condolences and that of the European Union on the catastrophic loss of life and destruction caused by the recent earthquake," the reading added.

The European Union hopes to secure additional funding for Turkey and Syria during a donor conference in Brussels in March.

In a press release last Wednesday, the bloc said its operation in the affected regions is one of the "largest search and rescue operations ever carried out" through its Civil Protection Mechanism.

A total of 21 EU member states and three participating states have so far offered 38 response teams, made up of 1,651 people and 106 search and rescue dogs, according to the reading.

9 mins ago

UN aid convoy entered northwestern Syria over the weekend

By Celine Alkhaldi and Chris Liakos

Employees inspect the loading of a truck between a convoy carrying tents and shelter kits provided by the United Nations at Syria's Bab al-Hawa border crossing with Turkey in the rebel-held northwestern province of Idlib on 12 February. February.

(Omar Haj Kadou/AFP/Getty Images)

A convoy of 10 United Nations aid trucks entered northwestern Syria through the Turkish border crossing Bab Al-Hawa on Sunday, said Madevi Sun-Suon, UNOCHA spokeswoman.

Trucks from the UN's International Organization for Migration (IOM) were carrying complete shelter kits, Sun-Suon said.

The official said help came after 22 UN vehicles drove through Bab Al-Hawa on Saturday, including:

12 trucks from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)

7 World Health Organization (WHO) trucks

2 trucks from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)

1 truck from the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF)

The delivery of urgent supplies to the quake-hit areas of northern Syria, much of which is in rebel hands, has been complicated by the long-running civil war.

On Sunday, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths tweeted from the Turkey-Syria border saying the people of northwestern Syria "feel abandoned, rightly so."

“So far we have failed the people in northwestern Syria,” Griffiths said, adding that his focus and obligation now is to “correct this failure as quickly as we can.”