The UN regretted the failure to deliver urgently required relief to Syria's conflict-torn areas, while announcing that the casualty toll from the earthquake that also affected Turkey, which already stands at over 33,000, is expected to climb significantly.
"We have so far failed the people in northwest Syria. They rightly feel abandoned. Looking for international help that hasn't arrived," Martin Griffiths, the agency's chief of assistance tweeted.
Although a UN convoy carrying supplies for northwest Syria arrived via Turkey, Griffiths said much more was required for the millions of people whose houses had been devastated. Griffiths estimated the damage in southern Turkey on Saturday, when the death toll stood at 28,000, and said he anticipated the number to "double or more" as the likelihood of finding survivors dwindled with each passing day.
Supplies have taken a long time to reach Syria, where the country's healthcare system has been devastated by years of war and where rebels fighting President Bashar al-government, Assad's which is subject to Western sanctions, still hold sway in some regions.
However, a 10-truck UN convoy containing shelter kits, plastic sheeting, rope, blankets, mattresses, and carpets entered northwest Syria via the Bab al-Hawa border crossing, according to an AFP correspondent.
Assad expressed his willingness for more border crossings to help deliver aid into the rebel-held northwest when the head of the World Health Organization met with him on Sunday in Damascus, according to reports.
After nearly 12 years of civil war, only Bab al-Hawa remains open for humanitarian aid to reach residents in rebel-held areas of Syria after other crossings were shut down as a result of pressure from China and Russia.
Tedros claimed that while Damascus had given the all-clear for cross-line assistance convoys from government areas to proceed, the WHO was still awaiting permission from rebel-held areas before entering.
In order to alleviate the shortage of supplies, equipment, and medications, Assad looked forward to continuing their "efficient cooperation" with the UN organization, according to his presidency.
However, in Turkey, some rescue efforts were put on hold due to security concerns, and, according to state media, dozens of people have been detained for looting or attempting to scam earthquake victims.
Due to a significant security danger to its employees, an Israeli emergency relief organization announced on Sunday that it has halted its earthquake rescue mission in Turkey and returned home.
The official death toll from Monday's 7.8-magnitude earthquake is now 33,186 after officials and medical personnel reported 29,605 deaths in Turkey and 3,581 in Syria.
