Johannesburg - The Gift of the Givers ( GOTG) team that went on a search-and-rescue mission to Türkiye and Syria landed back in South Africa on Saturday morning at both Cape Town International Airport and OR Tambo International Airport.
The Turkish Ambassador, Aysegul Kandas, embassy staff and the SAPS K9 Unit representatives received the group in Johannesburg while Western Cape Premier Alan Winde, his senior staff, the Turkish Consul General, Sinan Yesildag, the Rector and senior management of CPUT, and the Habibia Brigade welcomed the team in Cape Town.
Gift of the Givers was amongst the first respondents following the devastating impact of the twin quakes in Türkiye and Syria, with 69 people and police K9 sniffer dogs and their handlers, joining.
Türkiye’s ambassador Ayşegül Kandaş said: “Turkish teams are still on the ground while some foreign teams are leaving. South Africa was one of the first NGOs and teams on the ground. Türkiye is in need of humanitarian aid. We are happy that 100+ countries are coming to help. We are grateful you saved lives. We watched you on tv because rescue efforts were broadcast live.
“There was so much compassion and humanity. We are grateful for that. Turkish people will never forget this. We won’t forget the good stuff done for us. You will be our friends forever. We want you in turkey in better times. We have a saying. We have friends on bad days. You are our friends on bad days.
“We appreciate the courtesy and care afforded by these entities as it serves as a motivation for many in our country to stand up and serve locally and internationally. By all international standards the teams excelled in Hatay, the city with almost 90% destruction in Turkey, maintaining humility and treating the affected with dignity and compassion.”
Gift of the Givers founder Imtiaz Sooliman said: “We thank South Africans for their prayer, kind words, encouragement and incredible generosity. A special thanks to the top command of the SAPS for releasing the K9 team in less than 12 hours and to ACSA for incredible support at the airports on departure and now facilitating arrangements for a huge reception on arrival. The final appreciation goes to the families of the team for their sacrifice as this intervention is extremely high risk and could result in loss of life of their loved ones.”
IOL