Text Only
Search

 
Red Cross Official Arrives in Israel to Discuss Humanitarian Conditions

09 August 2006

Lebanese volunteers wrap two bodies in blankets after recovering them from the debris of a demolished building that was struck by Israeli war plane missiles at the village of Mashghara in the western Bekaa Valley, Lebanon
Lebanese volunteers wrap two bodies in blankets after recovering them from the debris of a demolished building that was struck by Israeli war plane missiles at the village of Mashghara in the western Bekaa Valley, Lebanon
The head of the International Committee of the Red Cross is in Israel for talks with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on the region's humanitarian situation.

The Red Cross says Jakob Kellenberger reached Israel Wednesday by road from the embattled southern Lebanese port of Tyre, where he spent two days surveying conditions.

Kellenberger is expected to discuss humanitarian conditions in northern Israel and southern Lebanon with Mr. Olmert and the Israeli foreign and defense ministers.

Meanwhile, aid agencies said Wednesday that desperately needed humanitarian relief is being paralyzed after the Israeli bombing of roads and bridges severed routes to the hardest-hit areas of southern Lebanon.

Kellenberger said during his visit to Tyre Tuesday that it is vital to re-establish access to south Lebanon, cut off by an indefinite Israeli ban on movement in the region.

A spokeswoman for the U.N. World Food Program said relief agencies are looking for alternative ways to provide fuel and other aid to Lebanese civilians isolated by heavy fighting in the south.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP and Reuters.

emailme.gif E-mail This Article
printerfriendly.gif Print Version

  Related Stories
Israel to Expand Offensive Against Hezbollah
France, US Consider Changes in Middle East Resolution Before Security Council Vote
French President Says UN Resolution on Lebanon Must Include Immediate Cease-Fire
 
  Top Story
Berlin Wall Celebration Marked by Joy and Caution  Audio Clip Available

  More Stories
Officials Warn of Possible Collapse of Palestinian Authority
Hariri Names New Lebanese Government After Five Week Vacuum  Audio Clip Available
US Had Previously Monitored Fort Hood Shooting Suspect
NATO: 130 Militants Killed in Afghanistan
US, Germany Press Afghan President on Reform  Audio Clip Available
Clinton Urges 'Compassion' for Americans Detained in Iran  Audio Clip Available
Iran Charges 3 US Detainees with Espionage
Iraq Electoral Official Says Vote Will Happen On Time   Audio Clip Available
Afghans React To Possible US Troop Surge  Audio Clip Available
Suicide Bomber Kills 3 in Northwestern Pakistan
China Executes Nine Ethnic Uighurs in July Unrest
APEC Economies Report Improved Trade Finance, Discuss Free Trade  Audio Clip Available
Scientists Report Abnormal Sea Level Rises Off Western Australia  Audio Clip Available
Tropical Storm Ida Aims For US Gulf Coast;  State of Emergency in Effect
Obama Makes First China Tour as Economic Interdependence Grows  Video clip available