maaxx.ca

Bisnis.com, JAKARTA – Ministry of Interior Morocco said accepting assistance from the four countries was initially a decision made based on a proper assessment of needs on the ground and noted that it was not a rejection of the offer.

Authority Morocco has been criticized for receiving limited foreign aid even as relief teams struggle to reach remote areas worst hit by Friday’s devastating earthquake that claimed more than 2,800 lives.

According to Aljazeera, only search and rescue teams from the United Kingdom, Qatar, Spain and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have been allowed to operate on the ground by Moroccan authorities, despite numerous offers governments around the world.

An earthquake measuring 6.8 on the Richter Scale (SR) struck Marrakech and the remote High Atlas region located about 75 kilometers (47 miles) west of the ancient city.

Qatar has sent humanitarian aid, search and rescue teams and vehicles, including relief trucks, to earthquake-hit areas, Doha News reported.

A Spanish military search and rescue unit consisting of 56 rescuers and four sniffer dogs arrived in Morocco on Sunday (9/10/2023), the Spanish Defense Ministry said. Another military plane with 30 rescuers and four search dogs was also dispatched.

On Sunday (9/10/2023), Britain announced that it was deploying 60 search and rescue specialists, four search dogs, rescue equipment and a medical assessment team.

Rescue teams and UAE Police ambulances were also deployed.

Support

Meanwhile, Tunisia, Algeria, France, Germany, Italy, Canada, etc. UN said he was ready to intervene, but was still waiting for a response from the authorities.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) generally manages international responses to major disasters and emergencies through its agencies, Disaster Assessment and Coordination (UNDAC) and the Advisory Group International Search and Rescue (INSARAG).

UN agencies can be deployed within 12 to 48 hours of notification and depart at the request of the relevant government as well as the humanitarian coordinator or UN resident in the country. The duration of application is generally between two and four weeks. However, the Moroccan government has not requested aid.

Jens Laerke, deputy spokesperson for OCHA, told Al Jazeera on Tuesday (9/12/2023) that the UN had sent an emergency team of experts to offer our support in the assessment, coordination and the response to the effort led by the government.

“This UN team was sent at the request of the UN Resident Coordinator in Morocco,” continued Laerke, noting that “NSARAG is available as a response network of search and rescue teams in urban environment (USAR), but has not received any request from the government.

“It is up to the Moroccan government to determine the support it deems necessary. “We continue to communicate closely with the authorities on this matter,” Laerke said.

“In a disaster of this magnitude, the UN is ready to support the people and government of Morocco,” he explained.

Although the United States sent a small team of disaster experts to Morocco to assess the situation, it also said it was prepared to do more.

The Moroccan Interior Ministry said on Sunday (10/09/2023) that accepting aid from the four countries was initially a decision taken based on a proper assessment of needs on the ground and noted that it was not a rejection of the offer. . The ministry added that poorly coordinated aid would be counterproductive.

No geopolitical problem

Abdelmalek Alaoui, president of the Moroccan Strategic Intelligence Institute, told Al Jazeera that he believes there is no geopolitics behind Morocco’s decision to be selective in receiving aid.

“The question of how to channel international aid has been at the center of discussions since day one. “We fear that if you receive too much aid in a disorganized way, it will create bottlenecks and it will be very complicated to manage,” Alaoui told Al Jazeera from the capital Rabat, adding that the worst-affected areas were the regions. …is a rural mountain area.

According to him, all international aid is welcome in Morocco, but it must be organized and provided in the right way.

“You only have one path. It takes a very long logistics line to get there. “We have to make sure that the aid does not add to the problem,” he explained.

He added that Morocco does not reject international aid, but that it tries to channel it in the best way to best serve the interests of the population.

Abdelhakim Moustaid, regional health director in Ouirgane, said the rescue efforts were a complex operation.

“Remember that this is a 6.8 magnitude earthquake in a mountainous area where access is very difficult,” he told Al Jazeera.

On Monday (9/11/2023), a spokesperson for the German Foreign Ministry said that Germany had not seen any indication that Morocco’s decision not to provide aid to Berlin in the event of a earthquake land was political.

“Diplomatic relations between Germany and Morocco are good,” the spokesperson added, noting that Moroccan officials were grateful to Germany for its offer of help.

Although diplomatic relations between France and Morocco have been strained in recent years, the French foreign minister told French broadcaster BFM that France was ready to help Morocco. This is a sovereign decision and Morocco alone has the right to determine its needs.

France announced aid of $5.4 million, or around 83 billion rupees, which will be distributed to non-governmental organizations already active in the disaster zone. (Nizar Fachri Rabbani)

Check out other news and articles at Google News