At 4:17am on 6th February, as people lay sleeping, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck south east Turkey and northern Syria. The death toll has now surpassed 47,000, with thousands more injured or homeless. We are launching an emergency appeal to raise funds for life-saving medication and supplies. We can't do this without your help.

Northern Syria has been shattered by over eleven years of conflict and is in the midst of a bitterly cold winter. This disaster puts already struggling communities in a truly desperate situation. Homes and buildings have collapsed and with the instability caused by war, many more may yet do so. This leaves extremely vulnerable groups of people at risk of frostbite and hypothermia.

We are working with our partners to respond by providing urgently needed medication and supplies, across north-west and north-east Syria, as well as Turkey. A spokesperson for our partner, SAMS (Syrian American Medical Society) said "hospitals are overwhelmed with patients filling the hallways. There is an immediate need for trauma supplies and a comprehensive emergency response to save lives."

So far, we have committed £120k to three of our long-standing partners Physicians Across Continents (PAC), the Syrian American Medical Society (SAMS), and SAWA for Development and Aid. Under PAC and SAMS, these are funding medical equipment for post-traumatic care (e.g. dialysis kits), baby milk for orphans or mothers who are unable to breastfeed, lab consumables (e.g. syringes), orthopaedic consumables (e.g. surgeons drills) and salaries for medical staff. Under SAWA, funding is being used for cash grants to 280 families for urgent needs (e.g. hospital bills, medication, rent for temporary homes).

Please donate now and help us save as many lives as possible.

PLEASE NOTE:

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