Unicef, the UN agency dedicated to the protection of children, revealed on Monday that children under 17 years of age represent more than a third of the population affected by the devastating earthquakes in Turkey, while in Syria “the needs are immense “.
Maher Ghafari, UNICEF’s representative in the region, added that since the first day after the disaster, UNICEF has been attending to water and sanitation needs and has sent tanker trucks to areas where water supply has been interrupted. .
In Turkey, of the approximately 15 million people affected by the earthquakes, there are more than 214,000 pregnant women, revealed the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), quoted by the UN News portal.
Of this number of pregnant women, about 24,000 are expected to give birth in March, he added, noting that “mothers-to-be need support with emergency obstetric care and caesarean sections and pre- and postnatal care.
“With medical supplies exhausted and hundreds of health centers, maternity wards and spaces damaged, a race against time was formed to save lives,” the portal highlights.
UNFPA is in the affected areas of Turkey and Syria to restore critical services and protection to millions of vulnerable women and girls in need of urgent care.
In Syria, hospitals, health centers and safe spaces in Aleppo, Lattakia and Hama are receiving dignity and maternity kits for pregnant women and those who have recently given birth.
“There are thousands of blankets and coats, while more than 20 mobile teams with a gynecologist, midwife and psychosocial assistant care for women and girls in the three most affected areas of the province of Aleppo,” highlighted the UN website.
Another concern is to avoid gender violence in a situation of chaos.
The earthquakes that devastated southern Turkey and northwestern Syria a week ago caused at least 40,943 deaths, according to the latest report from the World Health Organization (WHO) released today.
Data advanced by the director of the WHO Regional Emergency Department, Rick Brennan, indicate that earthquakes of magnitude, first 7.8 and then 7.5, on the open Richter scale, caused 31,643 deaths in Turkey and some 9,300 in Syria .
In Syria, the consequences of the earthquakes add to the humanitarian situation that a large part of its population was already experiencing as a result of the civil war.
The regional director of the World Health Organization (WHO) for the Eastern Mediterranean, Ahmed Al Mandhari, highlighted the risk of malnutrition caused by the tragedy, after a visit to Aleppo.
Speaking to UN News, Al Mandhari stressed that “almost half of the health facilities are not working and several hospitals had destroyed equipment” in a region with its health structure already affected by the civil war.
According to Al Mandhari, around 25 million people were affected by the quake across Syria, and in Aleppo, there may be more than 200,000 people displaced.
This WHO official also said that he saw a family of 16 living in a tent.
Syria is also facing a fuel crisis that affects not only society, but also hospitals, which are without heating and many without electricity, he added.
For the WHO regional director for the Eastern Mediterranean, another challenge is the increased spread of waterborne and foodborne diseases, recalling last year’s cholera outbreak due to contaminated water and the possible transmission of hepatitis.
Al Mandhari also mentioned the risk of disease transmission in crowded shelters, citing an outbreak of lice.
Source: TSF
