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IDLIB, SYRIA March 17, 2023 — Baitulmaal, a Dallas-based international humanitarian nonprofit, recently completed the distribution of emergency food, water and supplies to 425 families displaced by earthquakes and flooding in northern Syria.

The distribution took place in six camps in two communities in the Maa’raat Misrin sub-district, most of which were established after the earthquakes on February 6, 2023. Families received items such as bread, clean water, sanitary napkins, infant formula and blankets.

According to Elizabeth Sohail, program manager at Baitulmaal, displaced families were at risk of illness and water-borne diseases after recent floods compounded the disaster in the region.

“Families who survived the initial earthquakes were facing more and more difficulties as the days went by,” Sohail said. “Basic necessities such as clean water, baby food, and hygiene products were urgently needed in these camps, and our donors came through to ensure that these families had them as soon as possible.”

After the deadly earthquakes on February 6, 2023 in which more than 50,000 people died across Turkiye and northern Syria, ongoing aftershocks and flash floods continue to affect vulnerable families in the region. In northwest Syria, a dam collapsed causing the Orontes River to overflow and flood villages where families had relocated after the earthquakes. In this area alone, approximately 1,000 houses flooded and 7,000 people were evacuated. Across the border in Sanliurfa, Turkiye, at least 16 people have perished in flash floods according to state news agency Anadolu.

NGOs like Baitulmaal are crucial in mobilizing aid to people in need. Baitulmaal has been on the ground in northwest Syria delivering food, rebuilding schools, completing water access projects, and responding to emergencies prior to the earthquakes. Last month, $5.35M in medical aid supplies were dispatched to hospitals and clinics in Turkiye and northern Syria in addition to emergency food, heaters and tents. To learn more about or contribute to these efforts, visit Baitulmaal.org.

Baitulmaal is an international humanitarian aid organization that provides life-saving, life-sustaining and life-enriching aid to people in need around the world. With headquarters in Texas, the charity has domestic offices in California, Florida, Illinois, Michigan and New Jersey as well as international offices in Africa, South Asia and the Middle East.

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