Croatian Caritas said on Sunday that it is starting a fundraising campaign to help earthquake-stricken Morocco.

“It is extremely important to show solidarity and closeness to those who are suffering, because we ourselves felt the devastating power of the earthquake and we received a lot of help from the Caritas network in Europe and the world,” said Croatian Caritas, which will forward all collected funds to Caritas in Morocco.

“Every donation will be welcome in helping and eliminating the consequences of the earthquake for the already very vulnerable residents. The aid will first be used to provide food, water, hygiene supplies, temporary shelter and psychosocial assistance, and later to rebuild homes and normalize the lives of the most vulnerable families. The aid we collect will be an expression of solidarity, compassion and support for the victims in Morocco”, said Caritas.

Citizens and companies can donate by calling the Croatian Caritas donation phone number 0906010 (EUR 0.83/6.25 HRK per call; VAT included) or by paying to the account IBAN: 23400091100080340 (call to number 109/23) – purpose of payment Potres Maroko.

According to the latest data, more than 2000 people were killed, hundreds were injured, and a large number of buildings were destroyed in the devastating earthquake in the High Atlas region, about seventy kilometers southwest of Marrakesh.

The Moroccan Geophysical Centre said the earthquake occurred in the Ighil area of ​​the High Atlas mountains with a magnitude of 7.2. The US Geological Survey estimated the earthquake’s magnitude at 6.8 and said it occurred at a relatively shallow depth of 18.5 km.

The quake damaged buildings in Marrakech, the nearest big city to the epicentre, where residents spent the night in the open, afraid to go home.

A mosque minaret had fallen in Jemaa al-Fna Square, the heart of Marrakech’s old city, a UNESCO World Heritage site.