Syria – Aleppo: After the war, it counts thousands of dead again – Despair in the ruins of the earthquake

Aleppo was once famous for its bazaars, covered market, medieval minarets, domed baths and imposing ancient fortress, which was almost completely destroyed by years of civil war before the government recaptured a rebel stronghold there in 2016.

Today it is among those cities in Syria that were most affected by the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that left behind 2,500 dead in Syria alone.

According to today’s announcement by the local authorities, at least 390 people were killed and 750 injured in the province of Aleppo, while more than 50 buildings collapsed.

When the earthquake destroyed his home in Aleppo, Syria’s second worst-hit city, Youssef managed to reach one of his trapped relatives by phone and hear their voices despite the poor connection. But since then, the 25-year-old has been standing in the cold next to the ruins without any communication.

“I am waiting to hear from my father, my mother, my brother, my sister and her son. So far we don’t know anything about them,” he says.

“I spoke to them and listened to their voices, but unfortunately, as you can see here the crews are working very slowly and they don’t have enough equipment,” he adds.

This morning in the streets men, women and children wrapped in blankets sat around fires that had been lit trying to keep warm. Many earthquake victims spent the night in cars and trucks near where their homes were. Some others slept on the frozen asphalt.

The Syrian government has received help from a number of Arab countries including Egypt and Iraq, as well as its key ally Russia, which has sent rescue teams and mobilized forces already in the country to help in the rescue operations in affected areas, among them in Aleppo.

Little or no humanitarian aid has reached the rebel-held northwest of the country, however.

RES-EMP

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