SW News: Battling odds, the Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land is at the forefront of relief work in earthquake-hit Syria, said its Custos Fr Francesco Patton OFM. Speaking to an Italian wire service, he said that his friars are present in tremor-affected places such as Orontes Valley, Aleppo and Latakia.

Fr Patton told Italy’s SIR agency that the Franciscan friars are doing a commendable job in spite of the paucity of resources and logistical difficulties. He added that in their communities, where there are solid structures still intact, they are welcoming the homeless and doing all they can to provide them with basic amenities. In Aleppo, they are sheltering almost 2,500 people.

The Custos bemoaned the inadequacy of funds for Syria, which is reeling from years of civil war and crippling international sanctions that make essential items scarce to obtain. He blamed the global community for diverting aid for earthquake victims entirely to Turkey leaving Syria out of the picture. Fr Patton said the sanctions imposed by the United States and European Union were to blame for this scenario.

“I heard remarks from US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who, speaking to his Austrian counterpart, said that the US is working with its partners to provide earthquake relief in Syria, but stands firm against the collaboration with the Damascus government,” the friar told SIR. He added that a humanitarian perspective was the need of the hour and not politics.

He lamented that in spite of the tragedy and its aftermath the sanctions have not been lifted. “The sanctions are inhumane and immoral. I find it scandalous,” said the priest. He said that people are dying in the country because of the humanitarian catastrophe aggravated by the earthquake.

Christian communities in the Holy Land and neighboring countries as well as several humanitarian aid outfits have called for the lifting of sanctions imposed on Syria so that the suffering masses can be cared for without hurdles.