First Humanitarian Aid Mission Leaves For Quake Hit Syria

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A special flight involving 51 crew and other representatives from various ministries and NGOs took off at about 10.15pm from the Subang RMAF Base. (Bernama pic)SUBANG: Malaysia’s first humanitarian aid delivery mission to Syria which was hit by an earthquake earlier this month, took off last night aboard an A400 transport aircraft belonging to the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF).
A special flight involving 51 crew and other representatives from various ministries and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) took off at about 10.15pm from the Subang RMAF Base.
The foreign affairs ministry in a statement said 42 tonnes of humanitarian aid items collected from Malaysians since Feb 15 were brought on board the plane.
“The items include ready-to-eat food, baby items, medical supplies, generators, clothes and blankets, personal protective equipment, tents, carpets, and indoor separators.
“The flight time to Syria will be about 17 hours and 30 minutes, passing through the airspace of several countries and involving two technical stops, and is expected to land at Damascus International Airport tomorrow afternoon,” according to the statement.
The statement also thanked all Malaysians who responded to the call to lend aid to the earthquake victims in Syria.
It said that the close cooperation among ministries and government agencies, the security forces as well as NGOs since Feb 15 ensured the smooth running of the collection and delivery process.
“Among the NGOs that have also made this mission a success are the Malaysian Red Crescent Society, MERCY Malaysia, Shine Catholic Church, BeVital Ihsan Johor, RED A Humanitarian, Malaysia For Syria, Wisma Putra Global Peace Mission, Mahar, MCRD, Yemeni School Foundation, and Syrian People Malaysia,” according to the statement.
A 7.8-magnitude earthquake that hit southern Turkey and northwestern Syria on Feb 6 has claimed thousands of lives. - FMT

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