ISTANBUL: A six-member team of Humanitarian Care Malaysia (MyCare) is on a 10-day mission to Turkiye and Syria to deliver aid to victims of the devastating earthquake which hit the two countries earlier this month.
The Turkiye Humanitarian Mission 2023 from Feb 26 to March 7 is also joined by MyCare chairman Datuk Seri Ir Dr Kamal Nasharuddin Mustapha and its chief executive officer Kamarul Zaman Shaharul Anwar.
Kamal Nasharuddin said the team’s main objective is to deliver financial aid, clothes, food and necessities such as heaters and tents to the victims.
"This is our humanitarian mission to assist the victims of the earthquake which hit southern Turkiye and northern Syria on Feb 6.
"MyCare has launched a relief fund for the quake victims, and we successfully collected RM1.1 million. The fund has been distributed in stages to the victims in Turkiye and Syria through our partner here, ATAA Relief,” he told Bernama TV upon arrival in Istanbul yesterday (Feb 26)
Kamal Nasharuddin said that under the first phase, MyCare, a non-governmental organisation (NGO) based in Malaysia, distributed aid worth RM200,000 to 676 families on Feb 8, while the second phase involved 10,500 individuals from 430 families.
As for the third phase, aid worth RM350,000 will be distributed to quake victims with the help of ATAA Relief.
"This time, the MyCare team will personally deliver additional aid to victims in Turkiye and Syria.
"We also want to assess the current situation to see what more we can provide, in addition to creating a network with local and foreign NGOs to continue assisting the victims,” he said.
On Feb 6, a strong earthquake measuring 7.4 on the Richter scale jolted Kahramanmaras, Turkiye, followed by a series of aftershocks.
On Feb 20, a 6.4 magnitude quake hit Turkiye’s Hatay province, near the border with Syria, followed by a 5.8 magnitude tremor a few minutes later.
Over 50,000 deaths have been reported in Turkey and Syria to date, and the United Nations (UN) estimates that US$1 billion is needed to help the affected victims. - Bernama
