In pictures: Syrian baby born in earthquake adopted by aunt and uncle

"This girl means so much to us because there's no-one left of her family besides this baby," her uncle says

Reuters

Updated Tuesday Feb 21 2023

JANDARIS: An infant child born in northern Syria during this month's devastating earthquake was reunited on Saturday with her aunt and uncle, after her parents and siblings died in the disaster.

Footage circulating widely on social media after the quake showed a rescuer scrambling down a hill of rubble carrying a tiny dust-covered baby.

A baby girl, born during a deadly earthquake earlier this month photographed after her parents and siblings died in the disaster, in the rebel-held town of Jandaris, Syria February 18, 2023. — Reuters

The newborn was later identified as the child of Abdallah and Afraa Mleihan, who died in the earthquake along with their other children in the rebel-held town of Jandaris in Syria's Aleppo province.

The infant was treated in the Jihan Hospital further west in the Afrin district, also opposition-held, until medics could verify the identities of her relatives.

The baby girl, named Afraa after her deceased mother, lies in the Jihan Hospital in Afrin, Syria February 18, 2023. — Reuters

On Saturday, her paternal aunt Hala and uncle by marriage Khalil Al-Sawadi finally picked up their niece — whom they named Afraa, after her deceased mother.

"This girl means so much to us because there's no-one left of her family besides this baby. She'll be a memory for me, for her aunt and for all of our relatives in the village of her mother and father," Sawadi told Reuters.

Khalil Al-Sawadi, Afraas uncle-by-marriage holds her, in rebel-held town of Jandaris, Syria February 18, 2023.— Reuters — Khalil Al-Sawadi, Afraa's uncle-by-marriage holds her, in rebel-held town of Jandaris, Syria February 18, 2023.— Reuters

He was carrying Afraa, wrapped in a pink blanket, in one arm and his own newborn daughter Ataa, wrapped in blue, in the other. Ataa was born three days after the earthquake and Sawadi said he would raise them together.

"There were legal procedures to confirm the genetic relation, as well as a DNA test," he told Reuters.

Hala, Afraas paternal aunt reunited with her, in the rebel-held town of Jandaris, Syria February 18, 2023. — Reuters — Hala, Afraa's paternal aunt reunited with her, in the rebel-held town of Jandaris, Syria February 18, 2023. — Reuters

More than 5,800 people have died across Syria as a result of the Feb. 6 earthquake, the bulk in the opposition-held north which had already suffered years of bombardment since conflict broke out in Syria in 2011.

The quake also left more than 39,000 dead in Turkey.

Military police officers stand guard outside the Jihan Hospital, where Afraa who, according to her relatives, was born under the rubble during a deadly earthquake earlier this month, was treated, in Afrin, Syria February 18, 2023. — Reuters

Jandaris, where Sawadi lives, is one of the hardest-hit towns in the rebel-held parts of the north. Other children have been left orphaned there by the quake, after surviving years of bombardment in the nearly 12-year war ravaging Syria.

Afraas uncle-by-marriage, Khalil Al-Sawadi, holds her and (right) his own newborn daughter, in Jandaris, Syria February 18, 2023. — Reuters — Afraa's uncle-by-marriage, Khalil Al-Sawadi, holds her and (right) his own newborn daughter, in Jandaris, Syria February 18, 2023. — Reuters

Government-controlled cities have also been severely damaged. A woman gave birth to a child in the city of Aleppo during the earthquake and said he "brought her back to life."