The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has spoken about the plight of Uganda nationals in the Republic of Türkiye, following the devastating earthquakes that occurred on Monday 6th February 2023, 23 kilometres (14.2 miles) East of Nurdagi Gaziantep Province in Türkiye, near the Syria border.
In a statement, the ministry also dismissed rumours claiming that Turkey-based Ugandan blogger Fred Lumbuye had died in the earthquakes.
“The Ministry wishes to further clarify that there are no reported deaths of any Ugandans and the information circulating on various social media platforms relating to the death of Mr Fred Lumbuye as a result of this earthquake is not true.”
The Uganda Embassy in Ankara – Türkiye is in constant communication with the authorities of the Government of Türkiye and the leadership of the Uganda community in Türkiye to establish those who have been affected by the aftermath of these earthquakes and offer the necessary assistance to all the distressed Ugandan Nationals in the affected areas.
The majority of Ugandans in the Republic of Türkiye reside in Ankara, Istanbul, Konya, Izmir, and Antalya which cities were not affected.
According to the information availed, three (03) Ugandans in Diyarbakr, Türkiye were affected. One (01) of them sustained injuries and is undergoing treatment in a hospital in Malatic City and he is responding well.
“The Ministry would like to clarify that the two (02) girls captured in a video circulating on different social media platforms expressing distress, had earlier been contacted by officials of the Ugandan Embassy in Ankara-Türkiye and remain in constant communication to offer the required support,” MoFA said in a statement.
It added: “The Ministry wishes to urge all Ugandans in the Republic of Türkiye to reach out to Uganda Embassy in Ankara Türkiye (email: Ugandaembassyturkey@gmail.com; Tel: +905396440840, +905313468102) for consular support.”
The Ministry said it is working with the Ugandan Embassy in Ankara to continue monitoring and following up on its nationals in Türkiye and provide regular updates.
“The general public is requested to provide information on any affected Ugandan on the following contacts: Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Email: Consular@mofa.go.ug, Tel. +2567788228.”
On Friday, a senior World Health Organization official bemoaned Syria’s “forgotten crisis” as aid began trickling into rebel-held areas, days after a devastating earthquake.
As the WHO prepared to fly medical supplies to Syria from Dubai, Mike Ryan, executive director of the WHO’s Health Emergencies Programme, said a huge backlog of aid was waiting to reach Syria’s rebel-held northwest.
UN chief Antonio Guterres urged the Security Council on Thursday to authorise the opening of additional crossings on the Turkey-Syria border for the delivery of UN aid to rebel areas.
Officials and medics said 18,991 people had died in Turkey and 3,377 in Syria in Monday’s quake, bringing the confirmed total to 22,368.