Iran vows more aid to quake-stricken Syria as ninth batch arrives

Head of the Iranian Red Crescent Society (IRCS) Pirhossein Kolivand says the country will continue to send more humanitarian aid to quake-hit areas in Syria, vowing to facilitate the dispatch of international relief to the Syrian people.

In a Thursday meeting with President of the Syrian Arab Red Crescent Khaled Hboubati, the IRCS head said despite a powerful earthquake in the northwestern Iranian city of Khoy on January 28, Iran rushed to help the Syrian and Turkish people affected by a devastating tremor on February 6 given cordial relations with the two countries.

At least three people were killed and more than 1,500 injured in the 5.9-magnitude quake with multiple aftershocks near the city of Khoy in the province of West Azarbaijan. It caused structural damage and the destruction of many homes in the city and its surroundings.

5.9-magnitude earthquake rattles Iran’s West Azarbaijan, leaves 3 dead, hundreds injured

A 5.9-magnitude earthquake hits the city of Khoy in the northwestern Iranian province of West Azarbaijan, with local authorities putting the number of fatalities at three.

"The Syrian Arab Red Crescent has successfully completed the search and rescue operation and now it should start the phase of settling the victims. We are ready to provide you with our experiences in this regard," Kolivand said.

Officials said on Friday that the death toll in Turkey now stands at 38,044, emphasizing, however, that the figure is expected to shoot up given some 264,000 apartments were lost in the quake and many people are still unaccounted for.

In Syria, already shattered by more than a decade of war, authorities have reported more than 5,800 deaths. The toll has not changed for days.

Iran delivers ninth batch of humanitarian aid to Syria

Iran's embassy in Damascus said on Friday that the ninth batch of the Islamic Republic's humanitarian aid arrived in the quake-hit Syrian city of Aleppo on Thursday night.

An Iranian plane, which landed at Aleppo International Airport, carried foodstuff, medicine, powdered milk, and other sanitary and hygiene products.

Iran has pledged rescue and relief assistance to both Turkey and Syria immediately after the earthquakes. It also joined the international call to pressure the US to lift sanctions on Syria, saying they have obstructed the delivery of aid into the quake-hit areas.

In a telephone conversation with the President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Mirjana Spoljaric Egger on February 10, Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said the Islamic Republic is ready to immediately dispatch humanitarian aid convoys and rescue teams to Syria’s northwestern province of Idlib as millions of people are in urgent need of food, shelter and warm clothes.

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.co.uk