Virginia first responders en route to Turkey
Emily Beck
Published Apr 11, 2026
There are discussions underway to open aid corridors from government-controlled parts of Syria to rebel-held areas following Monday’s powerful earthquake, Mohammad Hammoud, Syria country manager at the Norwegian Red Cross, told CNN on Tuesday.
Speaking to CNN’s Max Foster earlier today, Hammoud said he hopes that with the help and efforts from humanitarian communities, this would happen “in the coming days.”
“Currently, nothing has moved there, but there are discussions about moving aid and access to these areas,” he said.
When asked if the Syrian government in Damascus has been helpful to areas out of its control following the earthquake, Hammoud said: “They have stated that they are open to cross-line intervention, meaning from government-held areas to non-government-controlled areas.”
Earlier today, the head of the Syrian Arab Red Crescent – which describes itself as an independent and volunteer-based humanitarian organization – said that the organization is ready to “immediately” send aid convoys to rebel-held areas, including Idlib, through the United Nations.
Hammoud added that the humanitarian situation is worsening. “We are in a race against time," he said, speaking from Damascus.
Describing rescue and search operations, Hammoud said that due to the lack of machinery most of the work on clearing rubble is done by hand while the cold weather conditions are not helping.
"The buildings are already weakened because of eleven years of war," Hammoud told CNN.
