JINDRIS, Syria - Tens of children in Syria’s northern city of Jindris have lost their parents due to last week’s disastrous earthquakes which killed thousands of people in the country. Tariq is three years old. He was trapped under a collapsed building in Jindris when a tremor took place in Jindris. He was later rescued by rescue teams. His parents and sister died in the natural disaster. “On the first day, we gave him medicine. We wanted to improve his health. On the first and second day, one of his legs was neutralised and we had to amputate it to save his life. We are trying to save his other leg,” Ayad Khalid, a doctor at the hospital which treats Tariq, told Rudaw on Wednesday. Assad Yousef is a relative of Tariq. He says that 45 people died in the same building under which Tariq was trapped. “We rescued him 48 hours after [the quake]. His father, mother and sister died but thankfully he survived and is now at hospital,” he said. Arina has been hospitalised for more than a week. She too has lost her parents and brother. Every day, she demands them. “I swear our home has been destroyed. Hamood died too. Her parents also died. We are thankful to God. I will take care of this girl as I do not have any daughters. We are thankful to God. This is Arina’s condition,” her aunt, Leman Ela, told Rudaw. Five other children who have lost their parents remain in this hospital. A destructive 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck the Kurdish city of Kahramanmaras in Turkey on February 6, with its impact also ripping through neighbouring Syria. Another quake followed in both countries hours later. Over 4,300 people have been reported dead in Turkey-held areas in northwest Syria, according to the United Nations. The Syrian government has also reported over 1100 deaths. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said in a report sent to Rudaw English late Tuesday that 5,417 people were killed by the twin quakes in all affected parts of Syria.
