The South Korean government will provide $5 million in humanitarian assistance to Venezuela through international organizations operating in the country following this week's devastating earthquakes, the Foreign Ministry said Friday.
The ministry said the assistance is intended to "support a swift response to the loss of life and property damage caused by the powerful earthquakes in Venezuela, as well as early recovery efforts."
"The Korean government hopes this assistance will help restore the affected areas and enable residents to return to their daily lives as quickly as possible," the ministry said.
The Venezuelan government said Thursday that the death toll had risen to at least 235, with around 4,300 people injured. However, it did not provide an overall casualty estimate following the magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 earthquakes that struck about 160 kilometers west of Caracas on Wednesday.
The quakes were among the strongest to hit Venezuela in more than a century.
dagyumji@heraldcorp.com
