North and East Syria lacks resources to contain coronavirus without international support

ZALIN (QAMISHLI), Syria — In an interview with SuroyoTV, Joseph Lahdo, Co-Chair of the Local Administration and Environment Authority of the Democratic Autonomous Administration (DAA) of North and East Syria and member of the Gozarto (Jazira) Region Crisis Cell, stressed the need for citizens to be aware of the dangers of underestimating the danger posed by the coronavirus pandemic.

The Executive Council of the DAA recently imposed the mandatory wearing of masks in public spaces, markets, and all administration buildings. The new measures go into effect today.

Lahdo pointed out that the imposition of the wearing of masks in public spaces should be made as easy to comply with as possible and called on administrators of public and private facilities to provide masks so as not to force residents to purchase their own. Lahdo also suggested people make cloth masks at home to wear in public.

There are now several factories making masks across North and East Syria which can provide more than enough for the region’s population, said Lahdo, stressing at the same time that there will be administrative patrols to monitor the prices of masks.

Civil society organizations and officials in regional and local administration across North and East Syria have been imploring residents to follow the guidance of the Health Directorate and Crisis Cells and to abide by the set curfews and other regulations as confirmed cases continue to climb.

Lahdo stressed the need for citizens to be aware of the dangers of the pandemic, noting that if the virus spreads, health institutions in the region will not be able to receive large numbers of infected people.

Malek Hanna, an official of the humanitarian aid organization Syriac Cross, said that support for North and East Syria by international organizations is limited to providing only some food aid and sterilization material.

Hanna added that since the first case of the was confirmed in the Middle East, Syriac Cross began preparing studies of the health needs of North and East Syria, presenting them to various international organizations. All they were received in return was 600 baskets containing sterilizers and detergents.

The scant resources of the local administration will not be enough to contain the virus, said Hanna, who called on the international community to do more to avoid a humanitarian catastrophe.

Already, hospitals in Zalin (Qamishli) are witnessing shortages of critical medical equipment needed to care for coronavirus patients. With limited personal protective equipment available to staff, some have avoided receiving patients with symptoms of infection, fearing an increase in virus outbreaks within the underequipped hospitals.

Zalin has 10 private hospitals, but most lack the equipment necessary to handle even small volumes of coronavirus cases.

Many DAA officials have placed blame on the Syrian regime for doing little to combat the virus.

Last week, head of Gozarto Region’s Interior Directorate Kenan Barakat told SuroyoFM that the regime has not been cooperative with the DAA’s efforts to control the outbreak of the coronavirus and continues to fly commercial flights to Zalin without taking proper measures. Most of the cases of infection in North and East Syria, said Barakat, can be traced back to regime flights.