In earthquake-battered Syria, a desperate wait for help that never came

[brer cat]

JINDERIS, Syria — It took four days and nights after the earthquake for the rubble to fall silent here. The strongest voices belonged to the women, residents said. Parted from their children, or fighting to save them, they screamed until their lungs gave out.

In this forgotten pocket of rebel-held northwest Syria, there were no international rescue workers to save them. No aid shipments brought painkillers to the survivors when stocks ran low. Just six miles away, across the border in Turkey, thousands of tons of relief poured in; support teams from as far away as Taiwan answered the Turkish government’s call for help. But Syria, divided against itself and isolated from much of the world, was left to pick up the pieces alone, as it has again and again over more than a decade of war and dislocation.

snip

This part of Syria has endured crisis after crisis, home to millions of people who have braved war and displacement, hunger and disease. Even before the earthquake, 4.1 million here required humanitarian assistance.

Access to areas outside of government control has been weaponized throughout the conflict by President Bashar al-Assad, who has imposed restrictions on the movement of humanitarian groups — he has been helped by allies like Russia at the United Nations, and, at times, by neighbors like Turkey and Jordan, who have periodically obstructed the flow of aid. U.N. officials have rarely complained publicly, a move critics argue is designed to maintain access to Damascus at the expense of millions of civilians living outside of Assad’s control.

more at link https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/02/10/syria-turkey-earthquake-aid-rescue/

[Skittles]

1. omg -

"Parted from their children, or fighting to save them, they screamed until their lungs gave out. "

those people have been through so much, and now this...how anyone can believe in a "higher power" is beyond me...

gift article
https://wapo.st/3IgX52f

[niyad]

2. Heartsick KNR

[Samrob]

3. My heart goes out to the men, women and children living this nightmare in Syria.

It's almost like fascists dictators like al-Assad and Putin are beasts who do mind killing all their own people who are undesirable to them.

[brer cat]

4. It's a sickness in these dictators.

They absolutely have no respect for people they think are undesirable. It is a tragedy.