Turkish aid agency sends team to quake-hit Indonesia

By Elif Kucuk and Izzet Mazi

ISTANBUL

Turkey's Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH) has sent an emergency aid team to Indonesia in the wake of a powerful earthquake and tsunami.

In a statement, the IHH said that they have sent a five-person team to help people in need in the region.

At least 384 people died after Friday's 7.7-magnitude earthquake and resulting tsunami, said Indonesia’s disaster management agency on Saturday, cited by Indonesian television.

The tsunami, towering up to three meters high, hit Palu, capital of the Central Sulawesi province, and the northeast of the nearby Donggala Regency.

Aid to Syria

The IHH has also sent 14 truckloads of humanitarian aid to northern Syria, according to the agency.

The aid, including food, hygienic supplies, and blankets, will be delivered to needy people in Idlib and regions cleared of terrorists by Turkish-led military operations, said Yakup Alaca, IHH spokesman in the southern Kilis province.

This Jan. 20, Turkey launched Operation Olive Branch to clear YPG/PKK-Daesh terrorists from Afrin, northern Syria. On March 18, Turkish troops and the Free Syrian Army liberated the Afrin district center.

Operation Euphrates Shield, which began in August in 2016 and ended in March 2017, eliminated terrorists in another region along Turkey's border with Syria.