SNHR: 10,024 Syrians Died in Feb. 6 Earthquake

 People pass in front of a collapsed building in Hatay, Türkiye, 07 February 2023. (EPA)
People pass in front of a collapsed building in Hatay, Türkiye, 07 February 2023. (EPA)
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SNHR: 10,024 Syrians Died in Feb. 6 Earthquake

 People pass in front of a collapsed building in Hatay, Türkiye, 07 February 2023. (EPA)
People pass in front of a collapsed building in Hatay, Türkiye, 07 February 2023. (EPA)

The number of Syrians killed by the earthquake that struck Türkiye and Syria on February 6, has now reached 10,024, including 4,191 in non-regime areas, and 394 in regime-held areas, the Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) revealed in a report released Tuesday.

The report also said the death toll includes 5,439 Syrian refugees who died in Türkiye.

"There was an imperative need to respond to the devastating earthquake and to document the massive number of Syrians who died due to the earthquake, and how the late arrival of humanitarian assistance may have led to the preventable deaths of more Syrians,” SNHR noted.

The group said it took the initiative to undertake this onerous task that posed additional challenges despite the team’s large experience and trusted contacts across Syria.

The SNHR executive director, Fadel Abdul Ghany said in this regard: “We have expended all of this effort in order for relief organizations, especially UN bodies, to be able to access and utilize the lists of victims to compensate the victims’ families. However, this will not happen if relief aid keeps going to organizations that are designed to steal UN relief aid."

Abdul Ghany also said the Syrian regime and its allies are responsible for displacing millions of Syrians to northwestern Syria.

"Not only have the Syrian regime and its allies cut off their access to water, electricity, and services, but they have also continued to target them in their bombing operations for years," he added.



Syria and Neighbors Urge Israel to Stop Bombings

Israeli Merkava tanks in the buffer zone between Israel and Syria near the village of Majdal Shams in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, 08 May 2025. (EPA)
Israeli Merkava tanks in the buffer zone between Israel and Syria near the village of Majdal Shams in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, 08 May 2025. (EPA)
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Syria and Neighbors Urge Israel to Stop Bombings

Israeli Merkava tanks in the buffer zone between Israel and Syria near the village of Majdal Shams in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, 08 May 2025. (EPA)
Israeli Merkava tanks in the buffer zone between Israel and Syria near the village of Majdal Shams in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, 08 May 2025. (EPA)

The foreign ministers of Syria, Türkiye and Jordan, meeting Monday in Ankara, called on Israel to cease attacks on Syria and to withdraw troops from the country.

Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes on Syria since longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad was ousted in December, often targeting military sites and killing dozens of people.

Israeli officials have also described Syria's new authorities as extremists and claimed to defend the country's Druze minority with a recent spate of attacks.

Türkiye’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan told a press conference with his Jordanian and Syrian counterparts that "Israel's expansionism poses a significant threat to the security, stability and future of Syria."

"This must come to an end. And we are on the same page about this. Syria needs to be supported to prevent terrorist organizations from settling in this region," Fidan added, noting that Syria shares a 900-kilometer (560-mile) border with Türkiye.

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani told the joint press conference that "our borders are constantly violated by Israeli attacks".

The Israeli strikes are "calculated escalations aimed at destabilizing Syria and dragging the region into a new cycle of conflict", Shaibani said, decrying "systematic violations of international law and explicit provocations".

He called on the international community to put Israel under "increased pressure" to halt the bombings.

Jordan's top diplomat, Ayman Safadi, said attacks on Syrian soil "will not bring security to Israel and will bring nothing to Syria except ruin and destruction".