Morocco announced this Sunday that it accepts aid “at this point” from only four countries after the strong earthquake that hit the country on Friday: Spain, the United Kingdom, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.
The information was provided by the Moroccan Ministry of the Interior, which, in a statement, clarified that Rabat responded favorably “at this stage” to the offers of these four countries “to send search and rescue teams.”
This clarification comes at a time when several countries and organizations, such as Portugal, the United States, France and the UN, have declared themselves available and willing to provide help.
Meanwhile, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) announced that it will contribute €1.05 million (one million Swiss francs) to assist earthquake response missions.
“This initial support will be used to purchase basic materials in Morocco, where Red Crescent volunteers know better what the needs are,” the regional director of the International Federation for the Middle East and Maghreb, Hossam Elsharkawi, said in a statement to EFE. .
According to the federation’s director of global operations, Caroline Holt, the organizations are currently more focused on search and rescue tasks, “trying to get heavy machinery (for rescue efforts) to remote areas of the Atlas Mountains.”
According to the latest provisional data, the earthquake that shook the Marrakech region on Friday night left at least 2,122 dead and 2,421 injured.
Several countries have already shown themselves available to help, as was the case with Portugal, but they are still waiting for instructions from the Moroccan authorities, as is also the case with the United States or Argentina.
The US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, revealed today that, as soon as the earthquake became known, Washington “immediately” contacted the Kingdom of Morocco to offer all possible help.
The Portuguese Prime Minister, António Costa, also highlighted today that Portugal has civil protection and forensic medicine teams on alert and that the Government continues to monitor the situation of the Portuguese who are in Morocco.
Portugal carried out on Saturday an operation to transfer national citizens who were in Morocco and who expressed their intention to return, which made it possible to bring back about 140 Portuguese.
The Argentine Government also formally offered humanitarian aid, having made available the immediate dispatch of a team of 28 specialized search and rescue elements, as well as three tons of materials and supplies.
The team “has the capacity to carry out technical search, dog search, medical assistance and first aid,” said the Argentine Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement cited by the EFE agency, adding that they are prepared to send a civilian team.
The earthquake, whose epicenter was recorded in the town of Ighil, 63 kilometers southwest of the city of Marrakech, was felt in Portugal and Spain and reached a magnitude of 7.0 on the Richter scale, according to the National Institute of Geophysics of Marrakesh. .
Source: TSF
