UAE sends 223 aid planes to quake-hit Türkiye, Syria

ANKARA

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has delivered 7,176 tons of aid materials to Türkiye and Syria following last month’s deadly earthquakes that killed thousands.

In a tweet on Wednesday, the UAE Defense Ministry said the aid was dispatched aboard 223 cargo planes and one ship.

The aid was sent as part of Operation Chivalrous Knight 2 to support those affected by the quakes in Türkiye and Syria, the ministry said.

The ministry stressed that humanitarian aid to earthquake victims in the two countries will continue.

More than 48,448 people were killed in Türkiye in the quakes on Feb. 6, according to official figures.

More than 13 million people in Türkiye have been affected by the powerful quakes that rocked 11 provinces, including Kahramanmaras, Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye, Elazig, and Sanliurfa.

The quakes also killed around 6,000 people in Syria, according to UN figures.

* Ikram Imane Kouachi contributed to this report.