Thousands offer to adopt Syrian baby born under quake rubble

Thousands of people have offered to adopt the newborn baby girl who was born under the rubble of a home in north-western Syria, following the powerful earthquake on Monday.

When she was found, baby Aya meaning miracle in Arabic still had her umbilical cord tied to her mother.

Her entire family, including her parents and four siblings, died after the devastating magnitude-7.8 quake hit a large swathe of Turkey and Syria, including the rebel-held town of Jindayris where she was found.

A video of her rescue, which showed a man running from the rubble of a collapsed building carrying a baby covered in dust, went viral on social media.

I wish someone knew how to reach the child. I am ready to adopt her and take care of her until the last minute of my life, tweeted Ms Paulina Queralt, a Lebanese singer living in France.

Another said: I would like to adopt her and give her a decent life.

Baby Aya is currently in a hospital in the Syrian city of Afrin after she arrived cold and barely breathing, said paediatrician Hani Maarouf.

She is now in a stable condition.

Hospital manager Khalid Attiah said he had received dozens of calls from people around the world wanting to adopt the baby.

I wont allow anyone to adopt her now. Until her distant family returns, Im treating her like one of my own, the BBC quoted him as saying.

For now, Dr Khalids wife is breastfeeding the baby, alongside their own daughter, who is four months older than Aya.

As of Thursday, more than 20,000 people have been killed in the earthquake that left buildings toppled, hospitals wrecked and thousands of people injured or homeless across Syria and Turkey.

Rescuers are racing against time and the cold to find trapped people under mounds of rubble and debris. Embed Twitter Tweet URL More On This Topic Rebel-held areas in Syria get first batch of UN quake aid; death toll tops 21,000 As aid trickles into Syria, residents say too little, too late