WHO chief 'heartbroken' by visit to quake-hit Syria, says more funds needed

Director-General of the World Health Organization Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus walks at a hospital supported by Syrian American Medical Society (SAMS), in the aftermath of the deadly earthquake, in Bab al-Hawa crossing at the Syrian-Turkish border, in Idlib governorate, Syria March 1, 2023. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi

BAB AL-HAWA, Syria (Reuters) - Available funding and new border crossings were still not enough to help quake-hit citizens in Syria's battered northwest, the head of the WHO said on Wednesday, adding he was "disturbed and heartbroken" by a visit to the rebel-held region.

World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus was speaking to reporters after visiting a hospital in the area, where more than 4,000 people have died as a result of last month's devastating earthquake.