UN provides food aid through new humanitarian corridor in western Libya

UN provides food aid through new humanitarian corridor in western Libya

2011-04-19 22:52:50 GMT+7 (ICT)

UNITED NATIONS (BNO NEWS) -- The United Nations World Food Program (WFP) on Tuesday informed that food aid is being provided to western Libya through a new humanitarian corridor that reaches areas heavily affected by the armed conflict.

"Securing this humanitarian corridor is a first vital step in reaching thousands of hungry people affected by the conflict, in particular women, children and elderly people, whose food supplies are running alarmingly short," said WFP Executive Director Josette Sheeran.

Some of the areas have not had received aid since December but a first convoy of eight trucks departed on Monday to western Libya from Ras Jedir on the Libyan-Tunisian border.

The trucks are loaded with 240 tons of wheat flour and 9.1 tons of high-energy biscuits which are enough to feed nearly 50,000 people for a month. The food aid will be delivered through WFP's partner, Libyan Red Crescent.

WFP has provided food assistance and other relief supplies through different humanitarian corridors by road from Egypt and Tunisia and by sea into the main ports along Libya’s Mediterranean coastline.

More than 187,000 people have received WFP's aid in eastern Libya. In addition, the UN agency has positioned over 17,500 metric tons of food stocks across the North African nation.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported that an estimated 10,000 Libyans have crossed over from western region of the country into the Dehiba area, southern Tunisia in just the last 10 days.

In Benghazi, local authorities reported the arrival of some 35,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) but the UNHCR estimated that at least 100,000 residents from Ajdabiyya and Mistrata arrived.

Nearly half a million people have fled the country in recent weeks since protests erupted and fighting broke out between Government forces and rebels seeking the ouster of Colonel Muammar Al-Qadhafi, while another 330,000 have been internally displaced.

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