The head of the United Nations World Food Program said Saturday that he had encountered “horrific” scenes while visiting earthquake-stricken areas in southern Turkey.
Strong earthquakes, which began on February 6, have rocked neighboring Turkey and Syria, killing more than 50,000 people, according to the latest figures released Friday.
“There is only one way to describe what I saw today: the end of the world,” said David Beasley, Executive Director of the World Food Program (WFP), after visiting the city of Antakya in Turkey’s Hatay province.
You can see this on TV all you want, but until you’re here on the ground, it’s impossible to imagine the scale of devastation the earthquake has caused in #Turkiye. Antakya was a city of 1.5M people – now it’s a ghost town.
There’s only one way to describe this: Apocalyptic. pic.twitter.com/DNiY342U3c
— David Beasley (@WFPChief) February 25, 2023
“Entire neighborhoods have been flattened, homes destroyed, schools and shops closed, and lives lost. The scale of destruction here is truly unbelievable,” he added.
The official said in a statement that the situation on the Syrian side amounts to a “disaster upon disaster”, referring to the 12-year civil war.
The World Food Program said Beasley visited a United Nations logistics center in Turkey where trucks are being loaded with food and other emergency supplies before crossing into northwest Syria.
I’m here in #Turkiyewhere @WFP is supporting nearly 1 million people affected by these devastating earthquakes. Our teams are going all out – from delivering hot meals & family food packages to setting up 500+ mobile kitchens with local partners. More to come! pic.twitter.com/bRwEZ2Xfth
— David Beasley (@WFPChief) February 25, 2023
He stressed the urgent need to increase food deliveries to Syria “through all routes without any restrictions” and called on “all parties to facilitate access”.
Opposition factions control northwestern Syria, whose residents already depend on aid to meet basic needs. This was the area most affected by the earthquake in Syria.
The increase in aid shipments is linked to the opening of additional crossings from Turkey to the areas controlled by the factions.
One of the crossings, Bab al-Hawa, is already being used under a mandate from the UN Security Council, and Bashar al-Assad has given exceptional permission to open two other crossings for a period of three months.
