Germany’s interior minister Nancy Faeser stated that it will grant three months visas to Turkish and Syrian earthquake victims.
Germany to grant three month visas to Turkish and Syrian Earthquake victims
She told daily newspaper Bild,”This is emergency aid,”
Further added,
“We want to allow Turkish or Syrian families in Germany to bring their close relatives from the disaster area to their homes without bureaucracy,”
The devastating earthquake that shook Turkey and Syria on Monday claimed more than 28,000 lives.On Saturday (local time), it rose to 28,192, with Turkey’s death toll reaching 24,617, according to Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay. The White Helmets civil defence organisation has reported that 3,575 confirmed deaths have occurred in Syria, including 2,167 in the northwest rebel-held regions. According to Syrian state media, which cited the nation’s health ministry, an additional 1,408 fatalities had been reported in areas under the control of the government.
Faeser added that people who are eligible can have “regular visas, issued quickly and valid for three months”.
The 10 provinces in southeast Turkey affected by the earthquake will be under a three-month state of emergency, according to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Germany and Austria suspend rescue and relief work
Following an earlier identical decision by Austria on Saturday, Media reported that earlier Germany has also suspended rescue and relief efforts at the scene of a catastrophic earthquake in Turkey due to security concerns.
According to a statement released on Saturday, the German Federal Agency for Technical Relief (THW) halted its rescue efforts because of a change in the region’s security situation.
It had been working with Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Agency and International Search and Rescue (ISAR) Germany (AFAD).
Read the statement,
“In the last few hours, the security situation in the Hatay region has apparently changed. There are increasing reports of clashes between different groups. The search and rescue teams of ISAR Germany and THW will therefore remain in the joint base camp for the time being. ISAR and THW will resume their work as soon as AFAD deems the situation to be safe,” read the statement.
According to Media Reports the Austrian Army also cited security risks as a reason for ceasing operations. As per Austrian Forces Disaster Relief Unit, the Austrian Army has halted rescue operations in Turkey owing to a “increasingly dangerous security environment” (AFDRU).
Lieutenant Colonel Pierre Kugelweis of the AFDRU said in a statement
“The expected success of saving a life bears no reasonable relation to the security risk. There is increasing aggression between groups in Turkey,”
“There was no attack on us Austrians. We’re all fine … The mood among the helpers is good, given the circumstances … We would like to help, but the circumstances are what they are,”
“We keep our rescue and recovery forces ready. We are ready for further operations,”
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