North-West Syria: Situation Report (10 February 2023) [EN/AR]

HIGHLIGHTS

• The first UN cross-border aid convoy since the earthquake crossed from Türkiye to north-west Syria on 9 February.

• More than 18,000 deaths have been reported in Türkiye and north-west Syria since an earthquake of 7.7 magnitude struck southern Türkiye on 6 February.

• At least 1,206 aftershocks have been reported as of 8 February.

• On 9 January 2023, the Security Council agreed to extend UN cross-border assistance under resolution 2672 for an additional six-month period.

• All clusters were underfunded by the end of 2022. A 48 per cent gap in the humanitarian response to north-west Syria puts lives at risk amidst winter and a cholera outbreak.

2023 Earthquake: Türkiye and north-west Syria

Six trucks crossed from Türkiye into north-west Syria today loaded shelter items and Non-Food Items (NFIs) including hygiene kits, solar lamps and blankets. This is the first cross-border aid convoy since the 7.7 magnitude earthquake struck southern Türkiye on 6 February, escalating humanitarian needs. The International Organization for Migration (IOM), reports that the convoy items can meet the needs of “at least 5,000 people”. “What we need now more than ever is to continue this constant flow of supplies,” said Sanjana Quazi, Head of OCHA Türkiye. “This is a lifeline to people in north-west Syria. We hope to continue and to scale up to respond faster”.

Since 2014, the beginning of the cross-border operation, the UN has sent more than 55,000 trucks loaded with aid to northwest Syria. Of the four border crossings originally authorized by the Security Council, three crossings have been closed - AlRamtha (Jordan), Al Yarubiyah (Iraq) and Bab al-Salam (Türkiye). Today, the Bab Al-Hawa crossing on the Türkiye-Syria border is the single remaining border-crossing authorized for UN aid delivery into north-west Syria.
The operation was temporarily disrupted due to damaged roads connecting Gaziantep to the UN Transshipment Hub in Hatay where aid is monitored and verified before crossing into Syria. With the identification of two alternative routes yesterday, the UN resumed the operation in the early morning of Thursday 9 February.

Humanitarian needs continue to grow and overwhelm response efforts in the aftermath of the earthquake. The collective death toll in Türkiye and north-west Syria has increased to more than 18,000 (a 63 per cent increase from the figures reported in the OCHA Flash Update 8 February). At least 1,206 aftershocks have been reported.
Emergency response search and rescue teams from around the world have been mobilized to Türkiye. The United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination (UNDAC) teams are already in place in Adana, Ankara, Gaziantep and Hatay.

Additional members of the UNDAC team are expected to arrive in Kahramanmaras and Adiyaman by 10 February.
In north-west Syria, the situation remains dire, particularly for the 4.1 million people who rely on humanitarian assistance to subsist. It is reported that significant numbers of people remain trapped under the debris of collapsed homes. Flooding has been reported in displacement camps due to inclement winter weather.

The Syria Cross-border Humanitarian Fund (SCHF) has received pledged contributions aiming to respond to humanitarian needs in north-west Syria including the earthquake response thanks to the generous support of Germany, Ireland, Japan and Sweden.