The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has announced plans to send 200 tons of dates to earthquake-hit areas of Türkiye and Syria during the holy Islamic month of Ramadan.

The first UAE plane carrying 28 tons dates that will be distributed in the provinces affected by the Kahramanmaraş-centered earthquakes arrived at Gaziantep Airport, read the statement issued by UAE Embassy in Ankara.

The statement further read that the distribution will begin in the regions affected by the earthquake in the month of Ramadan after the transportation of dates brought from the UAE is completed. The dates are being stored in the warehouses for the time being.

In a bid to provide relief to the flood victims, the "Yiğit Süvari 2" operation was launched upon the request of UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on Feb. 7.

Devastating earthquakes jolted the southern region of Türkiye and northwestern Syria on Feb. 6 and claimed over 48,000 lives.

The number of planes sent from the UAE carrying relief supplies for earthquake victims in Türkiye and Syria increased to 223, with 7,176 tons of humanitarian aid materials dispatched to the quake-hit region so far, read the statement shared on the UAE Ministry of Defense's Twitter account.