Ramallah
Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki said on Thursday that the efforts of the Palestinian aid team sent to the Turkish province of Malatya were “thanks to Turkey for what it has done for Palestine” after the February 6 twin earthquakes in Turkey.
Al-Maliki traveled to Malatya on February 9, where he assessed the Palestinian team’s eight-day rescue effort.
Palestine sent 35 rescuers from the Palestinian Emergency Response and Rescue Team who participated in rescue operations after natural disasters in places like Indonesia, Latin America and Pakistan.
Al-Maliki told Anadolu that “even though Palestine is under occupation, he will not stop doing what his brothers in Turkey need.”
“The efforts of the Palestinian Authority for the victims of the earthquake are due to Turkey and the Turkish people for what the Palestinian Authority and the people have done for Palestine over the years,” he said. added.
Al-Maliki stressed that the Palestinian participation in the international rescue operation “is due to its willingness to be part of international solidarity”.
Al-Maliki said it was a “great honor” for Palestinians to help earthquake victims in this difficult situation.
“Some of the victims of the earthquake are Palestinians,” he said, noting that “natural disasters did not save anyone.”
“The Palestine Liberation Organization rushes to the rescue of all victims, regardless of religion, language or ethnicity,” he said.
“The presence of Palestinians in Turkey shows the brotherhood of the Turkish and Palestinian peoples. “We will not forget the love of the Turkish people,” he added.
The Palestinian rescue team, which spent eight days in Malatya, included civil defense personnel trained in search and rescue operations and health workers from the Ministry of Health, trauma specialists and emergency services. emergency health, as well as other personnel for shelter and post-traumatic psychological support. . .
Raed Kosmouse, head of the Palestinian Civil Defense Committee, said more than 250 buildings were destroyed in Malatya.
“As civil defense personnel, they carried out a search and rescue operation with a Turkish team in the rubble, but unfortunately could not save anyone,” he said.
Cosmos says his team works up to 16 hours a day and “everyone welcomes us, the official team and the people.”
“When people find out that we are from Palestine, they thank us, which motivates us to do whatever we can to help them,” he added.
Palestinian Red Crescent chief Ibrahim Abudalo said the situation in the quake-affected areas was very difficult.
Abudalo said the Palestinian Red Cross carried out operations such as evacuation, first aid, shelter and post-traumatic stress psychological support as well as food aid.
Palestinian officials stressed that despite participating in earthquake relief operations in other areas before, they had never seen such devastation.
“The love shown to us by our Turkish brothers is heartwarming. We will never forget it,” Abudalo said.
On February 6, two powerful earthquakes of magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 struck southern Turkey.
The massive earthquake centered in Kahramanmaras province also shook 10 provinces: Hadai, Gaziantep, Atiyaman, Malatya, Adana, Diyarbakir, Kilis, Osmaniye, Sanliurfa and Elazig.
The earthquake killed more than 45,000 people and affected around 13.5 million, causing the collapse of thousands of buildings.
*Ikram Imane Kwachi contributed to this report.
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