Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael)
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I welcome the Minister of State.

Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent)
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I am sure the Minister of State will join me and many others in expressing our deepest condolences to all those who have been affected by the devastating earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria. As of last night, the death toll had reached almost 16,000.The World Health Organization estimates that the death toll could go higher than 20,000 in the coming days, with hypothermia adding to the initial damage from the earthquake and devastating health conditions on the ground, as well as the conditions for people who are still trapped. Even though we are moving past the crucial 72 hours in which rescue is most likely, we are still seeing heroic scenes of almost impossible rescues past that time. For that reason I ask the Minister of State to address the search and rescue element of the response, as well as the much greater and wider humanitarian response that will be needed in the weeks and months ahead.

The utter devastation experienced by people in Türkiye and Syria is further compounded by the dire conditions, in particular for refugees and displaced people in the area along the border between Türkiye and Syria and in the north-west of Syria. While I welcome that Ireland has made a commitment to humanitarian assistance, a sum of €2 million is inadequate for a disaster of this historic scale. There are other ways we can help also.

I have spoken with former colleagues from my time in Trócaire, who are now working on the ground with local NGOs on a cross-border basis in Türkiye and Syria providing support to those affected. The local NGOs working in that cross-border way have highlighted that one of the issues is that they cannot bring goods across the border to Syria and are forced to buy goods there where supplies are limited and expensive due to the prolonged conflict. It is crucial that humanitarian aid should be able to be distributed in a cross-border way in this cross-border disaster. Meanwhile, international news organisations also report that aid has been slow to reach those who need it due to the sanctions in Syria. It is important that the sanctions do not get in the way of this crucial humanitarian response. I urge the Minister of State to engage with his Turkish counterparts and his colleagues at EU and UN level to ensure vital aid is able to reach the communities in north-west Syria who are so badly affected.

This disaster compounds existing tragedies. A total of 6.7 million people in Syria are internally displaced and are near the Syria-Türkiye border. There has also been a cholera outbreak since September 2022 in north-west Syria. I urge the Minister of State to engage with the Minister for Health on the possibility of sending medical equipment, given that along with this disaster there are existing problems, which are now compounded by the threat of hypothermia and other weather threats to public health.

This disaster has happened in a place where the social fabric has been damaged by war and issues such as poverty and poor housing were already affecting communities. NGOs on the ground are calling for medical supplies, plastic sheeting, fuel, transport, ambulances, tents, machines to remove the debris and materials to construct reception centres. As well as those who are internally displaced within Syria, both Syria and Türkiye also host refugees from other parts of the world. For example, it is estimated that 57,000 Palestinians are affected by this disaster. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency, UNRWA, has called separately for relief to target those who are often the most vulnerable among the vulnerable in a place that is already experiencing a long-term humanitarian crisis. I hope the Minister of State will let me know what Ireland will do and also what engagement we have had with the international community on the response.

Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Senator for raising this important issue. It is the topic that is first and foremost on most people's minds throughout the world at the moment following the disaster of the earthquake in Türkiye and Syria in recent days. It was an unexpected shock and it caused a significant number of deaths to date. Unfortunately, the death toll is rising on a daily basis. In the first week or so following the earthquake, the emphasis is on recovering people buried under the rubble and all agencies are working to that effect.

I join the Senator in offering our condolences and those of the Irish people to those in Türkiye and Syria who have been affected. I extend the condolences to the approximately 2,000 people from Syria who are currently living in Ireland and to the similar number of Turkish people here, many of whose families have been affected and who have suffered bereavement. It is important that we recognise that people here have been affected.

The Senator will be familiar with our agencies working on the ground. To date, thankfully, we have not heard of any casualties among Irish aid workers on the ground who have been in those countries. I am aware that some of the buildings they live in have been destroyed. I am conscious that some aid workers are sleeping in cars with their families with temperatures of -6°C at night and trying to do work to help the rescue mission on a daily basis as well. Our aid workers on the ground were working with people locally, who were friends of theirs, who have already suffered in the tragedy. It is very difficult for our people in the area.

As the Senator will be aware, the Tánaiste and I announced an immediate response on Monday to provide €2 million in humanitarian assistance to the people of Türkiye and Syria. The funds will be allocated to the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, IFRC, and the United Nations Syria Cross-Border Humanitarian Fund, which are both best placed to respond immediately. The sum of €1 million will be provided to the IFRC in Türkiye, which works with the Turkish Red Crescent to provide shelter, blankets and hot and cold meals for those injured and evacuated. In Syria, €1 million will support people in north-west Syria where 90% of the 4.6 million people in the region already need humanitarian assistance after 11 years of war and internal displacement. Many of the Syrian people who have been displaced are in Türkiye and have been affected on a second occasion.

Faced with disasters such as the earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria, we understand that collective action is needed and we are working with other EU member states and the UN to ensure our joint support is co-ordinated and effective. Ireland also provides pre-positioned funds to the UN Central Emergency Response Fund, CERF, which reacts rapidly and at scale when disasters happen. Yesterday, CERF announced a package of $25 million for this disaster. Ireland's contribution to the CERF for 2023 is €12.5 million.

Ireland is ready to respond to the disaster through its rapid response initiative. This includes emergency stocks pre-positioned in UN distribution hubs around the world, and a roster of humanitarian experts that can deploy at short notice to support the UN humanitarian response. These include experts in shelter, water, energy, child protection, engineering, and cash assistance. The latter is most important so that people can buy food, blankets and get accommodation in the immediate future.

Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent)
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The Minister of State mentioned the incredible bravery of the humanitarian workers who are in the area. We also witnessed scenes such as the seven-year old girl protecting her brother's head for 17 hours. Humanitarian workers are working at great danger to themselves and, therefore, it behoves us to think about those who would have us turn our back on those in need, our fellow humanity. Each person is precious and is part of our common hope and responsibility. I am concerned that after the immediate response, we may see a pulling away. We saw the amount of European resources, for example, that have gone into building a wall between Türkiye and Syria. The border crossing issue is significant in the context of humanitarian resources being able to cross. Could the Minister of State address that issue and ensure there will be sustained and increased support? He mentioned the standing support for the UNCERF, and I mentioned the UNRWA. They will need additional funds given the scale of this disaster. Could he also comment on the diplomatic engagement to ensure that a border blockage does not arise for humanitarian aid accessing northern Syria in particular?

Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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As the Senator rightly pointed out, there are additional difficulties in northern Syria because of the war there, which has been going on for years. It is hard to know who is in control of the region. There is a government in place but it is not strong in the region.

Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent)
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However, there are NGOs on the ground.

Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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That is specifically why we are working through the United Nations Syria Cross-border Humanitarian Fund.They are the only people who are accepted in the region by all sides. They are seen as neutral and independent with a humanitarian remit. Anyone else trying to get in there would be counterproductive. This is the group through which we are working.

The €2 million we announced at the weekend is an initial allocation and we want to see what the demand is. We know it is substantial but we want to hear from the agencies on the ground. For example, we have positioned equipment, blankets and other materials, including medical supplies, in Italy and Dubai. At very short notice, as soon as the agencies on the ground tell us precisely what they need, they can be flown over in a matter of hours. We are awaiting full information on this.

I spoke with the chief executive of Concern, who is out there, yesterday. He said that it has some cash resources available because people need to be able to buy food, blankets and medical materials. This is what they need there now. I thank An Post and the agencies that came together to allow people to make donations through their local post offices. These will be used to provide cash directly. Perversely, cash is very important out there in order to buy food and humanitarian aid so that people can survive the next week or two. The time for reconstruction is some way off. People are still dealing with the buildings that have collapsed, and they will be trying to recover as many survivors as possible in the coming days. This is a situation we will be speaking about for days and weeks to come.