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.
