President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has ordered Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture Muhadjir Effendy to oversee humanitarian assistance from Indonesia for earthquake victims in Türkiye and Syria.

“The President has ordered me to oversee the humanitarian assistance from the Government of the Republic of Indonesia. The assistance has been delivered in two batches. The first batch of the assistance was delivered on February 11 and the second batch was delivered on February 13,” the Coordinating Minister said after a meeting with the President at the Merdeka Palace, Jakarta, Monday (02/14).

The Coordinating Minister said that the assistance in the first batch was in the forms of equipment and personnel support, including medical doctors and medical personnel.

“In the first batch, we sent 62 personnel and supporting equipment. On February 13, we sent 181 personnel to provide our assistance, especially first aid support, Search and Rescue operation, and medical personnel, especially orthopedic surgeons,” Muhadjir said.

According to Muhadjir, for the second batch of the assistance, the Indonesian Government sent medical doctors and medical experts for treating infectious diseases, while in the next stage, the Government will send assistance in the forms of food and logistics.

“In the next batch, we will send assistance in the form of the logistics. We will send the assistance on February 20 with four cargo planes to send food and other necessities, including blankets, in line with the requests from Türkiye and the Syrian Government,” he said.

According to the Coordinating Minister, President Jokowi has also approved the Government’s assistance in the form of cash.

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The 7.8-magnitude quake struck the country and neighbouring Turkey last Monday, killing more than 37,000 people, at least 3,600 of them in Syria, according to government officials and emergency services in rebel areas.

Rescue operations are continuing, despite dwindling hopes of finding survivors. But Syria's long conflict and its effect on infrastructure are hampering efforts.

“When operating inside Syria, we are facing issues with line and mobile outages, undermining communication with staff,” Elias Abu Ata, spokesman for the International Rescue Committee, told The National.

“Some of our staff [are] losing their homes and working in temporary sites, including their cars,” Mr Abu Ata said.

One of the main challenges is access to fuel on the ground and many emergency team members are using their car engines to generate electricity to charge devices.

Some didn't make it. The IRC lost two of its workers in north-west Syria. Mohamed Shaabouk and Rowaida Glelate died tragically last week in their respective homes.

“They were committed and passionate individuals and were continuously focused on improving the lives of vulnerable people caught up in the Syrian crisis,” the IRC said in a statement.

Mr Abu Ata said at least one IRC field offices in northern Syria had been affected and "staff had been advised not to go back to buildings due to fear of aftershocks and the potential damage it may cause to some structures".

The IRC is also calling for wider access into Syria to provide relief for survivors.

Aid has been slow to reach Syria, where nearly 12 years of conflict have ravaged the healthcare system and parts of the country remain under the control of rebels battling against President Bashar Al Assad's government.

It was announced early on Tuesday that Mr Al Assad had agreed to allow UN aid deliveries to the opposition-held north-west, through two border crossings from Turkey, for three months.

“We use the same crossings [Bab Al Hawa] as the UN but we also transfer our assistance through commercial routes, which is why we need as much access as possible,” Mr Abu Ata said.

The first UN convoy going through Bab Al Hawa was last Thursday, comprising six lorries.

“We understand there are more convoys scheduled over the next few days,” Mr Abu Ata said. "We need those levels of aid coming in to scale up at pace."

Following the rescue operations, thousands of internally displaced people have moved across north-west Syria, with the majority of them making their way to neighbouring areas and staying in makeshift shelters vulnerable to aftershocks.

Many in areas of devastation are still without shelter, with more than 100,000 displaced families — and the numbers are increasing, Mr Abu Ata said.

“Displaced people are living in makeshift shelters or open air in sub-zero temperatures,” he said.

Clean drinking water, shelter, blankets and warm clothes are urgently needed, he added.

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