West Providing Earthquake Relief Only to Rebel-Held Areas, Not Government, Damascus Says

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Western countries do not provide necessary aid to the Syrian government, which is dealing with the fallout of the devastating earthquake, and only care about Turkiye or areas in Syria that are controlled by terrorist or opposition groups, the Syrian Presidency’s Special Advisor Bouthaina Shaaban said.

"Unfortunately, the West only cares about areas where the terrorists are - where the White Helmets are - but they do not care about the areas in which most Syrian people live... Most of the money, all of the equipment has been dispatched to Turkiye from Europe and from the US. Nothing to Syria from Europe, at all," Shaaban told media.

Earlier in the week, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies told Sputnik that sanctions against Syria drive prices up for everything and slow down humanitarian operations.

Turkiye and Syria were rattled on Monday by at least three major earthquakes and dozens of aftershocks that killed more than 10,000 people and collapsed thousands of homes. Russia and other nations have pledged their assistance to both countries.