At a press conference in Geneva (31.03.11), ICRC head of operations Pierre Kraehenbuehl said that the situation in Cote d'Ivoire now amounted to an internal armed conflict, causing thousands of casualties and widespread displacements of population.
As fighting escalates in Cote d''Ivoire, the Red Cross is scaling up efforts to help tens of thousands of people fleeing to neighboring Liberia.
Every day, thousands of litres of untreated wastewater are dumped into the Wadi Gaza River. The polluted water snakes through urban areas on its way to the sea, jeopardizing the health of the many families living on its banks, contaminating the coastline and endangering biodiversity. Sixteen sewage outfalls in the Gaza Strip lead directly to the sea.
At a press conference in Geneva (10.03.11), ICRC President Jakob Kellenberger urged all those involved in Libya's armed conflict to respect International Humanitarian Law and, in particular, to take all possible precautions to spare civilian lives.
Almost a hundred thousand migrants have already flocked from Libya through the overcrowded border crossing near the town of Sallum in Egypt.
In Geneva, ICRC Director General, Yves Daccord, calls for immediate and safe access to western Libya following two weeks of unrest in the country.
In response to the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Libya, two cargo planes have been loaded with 16 tonnes of medical supplies, including surgical equipment, dressing kits and drugs. The planes are due to take off from Geneva, Switzerland, late Friday night (25 February), one bound for Cairo, the other for Tunis. The ICRC plans to move these supplies into Libya by road as quickly as possible to treat those injured by the violence of recent days.
The number of war-wounded treated at the two main referral hospitals in the Somali capital Mogadishu sharply increased last year. More than 6000 such patients were admitted to Medina and Keysaney hospitals in 2010 compared to 5000 in 2009 and around 2800 in 2008. More than a third of the wounded (2300) were women and children, caught in the fierce fighting between the Transitional Federal Government forces, backed by the African Union, and armed groups such as Al-Shabab.
The International Committee of the Red Cross has launched a record appeal to cover its response to increasingly complex humanitarian needs worldwide. The Geneva based organisation is calling on donors for 1.047 billion Swiss francs for field operations - a 12 percent increase on the 2010 budget.
Several rebel groups and bandits are spreading fear and chaos in many parts of the Central African Republic. Regular attacks on civilians are resulting in killings, abductions, rapes and looting. They are forcing people to flee their homes to find a safe haven. Hundreds of thousands have been displaced, putting pressure on already impoverished host communities.
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