Now 13 years into the Syria conflict, northwest Syria is in ruins. Over a month since the devastating earthquake ravaged the region of 4.5 million, the humanitarian response remains a failure. Today, dark days are ahead as the war-torn region struggles to rebuild from one of the worst natural disasters in modern history.

At least 15,000 buildings are reported destroyed or damaged, leaving at least 11,000 families homeless throughout the northwest. In the numerous scattered tent settlements — and elsewhere in the region where water and sewage infrastructure is in shambles — cholera has spread, with at least two deaths reported since the quake.

Meanwhile, the capacity of the humanitarian response is extremely limited. Over 90% of humanitarian assistance to Syria moves through the hands of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, leaving most of the opposition-held territories dry of the much-needed aid, according to Steven Heydemann, a political scientist specialised in Syria.

“There is absolutely no question about the scale of the imbalance in the volume of support that is moving through the regime’s hands compared to in opposition areas,” Heydemann told The New Arab.