Earthquake/ Syria-Turkey: Algeria, under President Tebboune’s wise leadership, at forefront of states in providing first aid to victims

By: Hana Saada

ALGIERS – Algeria stands in an unwavering solidarity with Syria and Turkey following the devastating earthquake that struck both countries at dawn on Monday, causing thousands of victims and wreaking terrible infrastructural damage.

Algeria has dispatched specialized civil protection teams to Syria and Turkey in order to participate in the rescue operations. At the behest of the Algerian President, Mr. Abdelmadjid Tebboune, teams of specialized civil protection personnel arrived in Syria and Turkey to participate in the rescue operations, using techniques and means in accordance with international standards required by the International Search and Rescue Advisory Group (INSARAG).

As for Syria, Algeria was the first country to dispatch specialized civil protection teams, while President Tebboune, in a cable sent to President Bashar al-Assad, offered his sincere condolences to the government and people of Syria and to the families of the victims due to the devastating earthquake that caused losses of lives, property and infrastructure.

In the condolence message, the President said: “It is with great sadness and grief that we learned of the devastating earthquake that hit our dear Syria this morning, leaving thousands of victims and significant material losses.”

In this vein, the President emphasized Algeria’s full support for the brotherly Syrian people in light of these hard circumstances, reiterating the country’s readiness to provide assistance and exert every effort that would alleviate the effects of this disaster.

“Algeria, that shares the pain of this sore disaster with its brothers in the Syrian Arab Republic, affirms its full solidarity and expresses its aspiration to overcome this ordeal with much determination and steadfastness”.

The President concluded his condolences by saying: “Please accept, Your Excellency, the President and my dear brother, my heartfelt condolences, and our sincere and genuine fraternal solidarity. Please accept my warmest regards.”

In another cable, President Tebboune condeled his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan over the large-scale loss of life and the extent of the injuries inflicted by the earthquake, expressing full readiness to contribute to any effort aimed at alleviating the impact of this painful ordeal.

Besides, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and National Community Abroad has offered its sincere condolences to the families of the victims as well as the Syrian and Turkish governments and peoples.

“Following the devastating earthquake that hit localities in southern Turkey and northern Syria on Monday morning, causing loss of life and significant damage, Algeria extends its sincere condolences to the families of the victims, as well as to the governments and peoples of the two sisterly countries,” the statement reads.

“Algeria, which is sharing the pain of this tragedy with its brothers from the Turkish Republic and the Syrian Arab Republic, wishes to express its full solidarity with these two brotherly countries and hopes that they will be able to overcome this difficult ordeal with great patience, determination and courage,” concludes the communiqué.

For his part, the Minister of the Interior, Local Assemblies and Urban Planning Brahim Merad supervised, on Monday evening, an operation to send a second team of rescuers, and emergency humanitarian aid to Syria and Turkey.

On the instructions of the President of the Republic, Mr. Abdelmadjid Tebboune, humanitarian aid was sent to both countries in the presence of the director general of civil protection Boualem Boughlef, the president of the Algerian Red Crescent Ibtissem Hamlaoui, as well as the Syrian ambassador to Algiers, as part of an emergency humanitarian response to take care of the victims of this terrible earthquake.

This humanitarian aid consists of 115 tons of pharmaceutical and food products and tents for Syria, in addition to aid of 95 tons of various products for Turkey. The second team made up of 86 emergency workers specializing in natural disasters from civil protection, this morning, arrived in Syria to participate in the rescue operations.

The Minister of the Interior, in a statement to the press, emphasized the strong commitment of the Algerian state to international cooperation and assistance, particularly in the face of natural disasters, insisting on the pledge and the personal attention given to this operation by the President of the Republic, who is closely monitoring the situation.

He noted President Tebboune’s willingness for ”Algeria to be at the forefront of the States to arrive in the affected areas to provide first aid to the victims’, explaining that ” the President of the Republic has instructed that all measures should be taken to this effect.”

Mr. Merad hailed the efforts of the People’s National Army (ANP), the worthy heir of the National Liberation Army, for the accompaniment of the humanitarian missions decided by Algeria for the two sisterly countries, as well as the effective and swift response of the General Directorate of Civil Protection, acknowledging the competence and professionalism of its personnel.

For her part, the President of the Algerian Red Crescent Ibtissem Hamlaoui announced that 40 volunteers specialized in first aid have been sent to the disaster areas under this humanitarian operation, indicating that ”contacts will remain permanent with the Syrian and Turkish Red Crescents with a view to assessing the humanitarian needs of the two countries.

As for the Syrian ambassador, he praised Algeria’s outpouring of solidarity for his country “in these difficult circumstances”, saying that ” this is neither strange for a country linked to Syria by a particular history and ancestral fraternal relations.”

It is worth mentioning that this outpouring of support from Algeria demonstrates the country’s unwavering commitment to helping its neighbors in times of need and upholding the principles of international cooperation and humanitarian aid. The Algerian people, for their part, have come together in a great wave of national solidarity to help victims of the devastating earthquakes. Their hearts go out to the families who have lost loved ones or are searching for relatives.