Pope Francis Contributes to Earthquake Relief Efforts in Syria and Turkey

The small city was one of those heavily damaged by the Feb. 6 earthquakes believed to have killed more than 41,000 people in the region — a death toll that rises daily as rescuers continue to search through building rubble.

Iskenderun was also further damaged by subsequent floods and fires.

From Iskenderun, the thermal shirts will be brought to a refugee camp in Kilis, which is close to the border with Syria, less than 40 miles from Aleppo.

Vatican News reported that the Italian nonprofit Fondazione Rava will distribute the shirts to those in need.

Pope Francis urged people to continue to help the devastated region during his weekly Angelus address on Sunday.

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“Dear brothers and sisters, let us continue to be close with prayer and concrete support to the earthquake victims in Syria and Turkey,” he said Feb. 12.

Speaking from the window of the Apostolic Palace, Pope Francis described how he was moved by the images of pain and suffering from the catastrophe that he saw on television and urged people to “pray and think of what we can do for them.”

The United Nations reports that millions have been left homeless after two back-to-back earthquakes on Feb. 6 led thousands of buildings to collapse in parts of Turkey and Syria.

According to the director of Caritas Syria, the earthquake heavily impacted northwest Syria where 4.1 million people were already in need of humanitarian assistance after more than a decade of civil war.

Hannah Brockhaus is Catholic News Agency's senior Rome correspondent. She grew up in Omaha, Nebraska, and has a degree in English from Truman State University in Missouri.