Tuesday 14 / May / 2024
Paris: Rescue teams from Spain, Britain and Qatar have begun supporting Moroccan rescuers in areas affected by Friday's powerful earthquake, the Moroccan news agency MAP reported.
Britain sent 60 search and rescue experts, along with equipment and four search dogs to support the Moroccan-led operations, British Ambassador Simon Martin said in a post published early Monday on the social media platform X, formerly Twitter.
A special Spanish military unit with 56 soldiers and four search dogs also arrived in Morocco.
Several countries, including Germany, have pledged to help Morocco in the wake of the earthquake, which struck south of Marrakech.
Rabat said Sunday it had so far responded to support offers made by Spain, Qatar, Britain and the UAE, adding that it may accept offers from other countries at a later stage.
The 6.8-magnitude earthquake has killed at least 2,122 people. Since Friday, rescuers have been racing against time to find potential survivors in a challenging mission.
The quake triggered rock slides, blocking roads and making it hard for teams to reach hard-hit villages in mountainous areas.
Witnesses said that, until Sunday, some affected areas were still cut off.The French government has pledged €5 million ($5.4 million) to aid organizations operating in Morocco's earthquake disaster zone, Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna told the BFM broadcaster.
Colonna also brushed off questions about the absence of any official Moroccan request for help from France.
"We are ready to help Morocco. It's a sovereign Moroccan decision and it's up to them to decide," she said.
Asked why Morocco had accepted official aid from Spain and the United Kingdom, among others, but not from France, Colonna said "this debate is inappropriate."
"People are suffering. People need help," she added.
Relations between France and Morocco are strained, notably over the issue of Western Sahara, which Morocco wants France to recognize as Moroccan. However, Paris wants to improve its relations with Algeria, Morocco's arch rival and another of Paris' former colonies. Algiers backs the Polisario Front, a group which has fought for decades for independence for Western Sahara.
Meanwhile, Chinese state media reported that the Red Cross Society of China will give the Moroccan Red Crescent $200,000 (€186,000) for emergency humanitarian assistance.
Hlima Razkaoui, the Morocco director of humanitarian organization CARE International, has told DW that many people in areas devastated by the earthquake are living on the street and need water, food and shelter.
"People are still dealing with fear, they are still dealing with shock and with the loss of people, their families members," she said.
"Most of those in villages have lost their houses. Some still have fear of (a) second earthquake and do not want to get back to their homes, (so they) stay outside during the night," she explained.
Razkaoui said that Moroccan authorities and the army had already taken swift steps to save people and reach those in remote mountainous villages. "And now they already made the assessments about the needs and they are coordinating the efforts of the local civil society," she added.
