MOSCOW, February 13. /TASS/. Iran is grateful to Russia for the humanitarian aid it provided following last month’s earthquake that hit the country, Iranian Ambassador to Moscow Kazem Jalali told a news conference on Monday.
"The first country that responded to help was the Russian Federation. Russia sent humanitarian aid to the people affected by the earthquake in the city of Khoy. We are grateful for this," he said, pointing to active humanitarian cooperation between the countries.
Earlier, it was reported that a special flight of the Russian Ministry for Emergency Situations would deliver 35 tons of humanitarian aid to Iran, which was affected by a large earthquake on January 28. The emergencies ministry added that the cargo includes sugar, flour, vegetable oil, tents, warm blankets, stoves and a mobile power station.
The magnitude of the earthquake was 5.9. The epicenter was 23 kilometers southeast of the city of Khoy, home to 175,000 people. The source had a depth of 43 kilometers. According to the Governor of West Azerbaijan Province Mohammad Sadegh Motamedian, the number of victims totaled 1,167. According to data provided by Secretary General of the Iranian Red Crescent Society Yaghoub Soleimani, the quake-affected people received about 7,000 tents, and 30 temporary accommodation camps were set up, where people are given blankets, heating units and food.