SW News: To bring solace to the earthquake victims in Turkey, Papal Almoner Cardinal Konrad Krajewski has said that he has dispatched the Holy Father’s humanitarian aid to the affected masses. It is viewed as an “immediate commitment” to the afflicted people.

More than 39,000 people perished in the February 6 tremors in Turkey. The cardinal told Vatican News that he spoke with the new Turkish envoy to the Vatican Ufuk Ulutas and took stock of the situation in the country. The ambassador had met with Pope Francis on February 16 and presented his credentials.

“An hour after the meeting with the Holy Father, I met with the ambassador who explained to me what they needed,” said Cardinal Krajewski, who has been proactively undertaking emergency humanitarian interventions in Ukraine on behalf of the Holy Father. More than once, he personally took relief measures, including ambulances, to the afflicted people of the war-torn Eastern European country.

After the Holy Father met with the Turkish ambassador, he directed the Dicastery for the Service of Charity headed by the cardinal to do what was necessary to rush humanitarian aid to Turkey. The top Vatican prelate said the ambassador sought assistance in the form of canned rice and tuna, diapers and other items to beat the cold.

Cardinal Krajewski said after the Turkish envoy made the request, the Holy See was able to collect 10 pallets of food items which were loaded onto a truck within a day and sent to the international airport to be flown to Turkey, which arrived in that quake-ravaged country during the weekend. He said the Vatican lost no time in providing aid as Jesus performed miracles immediately without extending them to a week or so. “In the Gospel, it always says today, not tomorrow,” he added.

During one of his visits to Ukraine to distribute the Holy Father’s aid, the cardinal came under light gunfire but managed to escape unscathed. The attack did not deter him from making further visits to the war-ravaged nation.