The government of Syria’s northwestern province of Latakia have announced an end of the operation to search for survivors of the recent earthquake, the Asharq television channel reported on Monday.
According to the report, the governor of Latakia announced "an end of the rescue operation on the territory of the province" while also ordering further work to clean up the ruble of the collapsed buildings.
Latakia, with a population of about 1.5 million people, was one of the Syrian areas that were the hardest-hit by the earthquake. According to the latest data from the Syrian Health Ministry, the death toll from the February 6 earthquake has risen to 1,414 in the government-controlled area, and 2,349 injured people have been taken to hospitals. Rick Brennan, emergency director for WHO's Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean, on Sunday said about 4,000 lives had been lost to the earthquake in the areas controlled by the Syrian government, while 2,500 people sustained injures.
