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| Wednesday, 29 December 2004 |
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GENEVA, Tuesday (AFP) - The UN refugee agency said Tuesday that it was opening up its relief stockpiles in Sri Lanka, including shelter materials, for victims of the devastating tidal waves that killed more than 12,000 people and left about 200,000 homeless in the country. "Our supplies are usually for displaced people, but this is an emergency and the local population needs help right now," said UN High Commissioner for Refugees Ruud Lubbers. "The magnitude of this disaster is so enormous and shocking that we will do everything we can to join the international community in bringing help as rapidly as possible to the victims of these gigantic waves," he added in a statement. The UNHCR will provide 18,000 sets of plastic sheeting and matting, as well as cooking materials, mosquito nets and clothing. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said Monday that about a million people have been displaced in Sri Lanka following the massive undersea earthquake in the Indian Ocean Sunday. Some 200,000 people were homeless in the island, a spokeswoman added. After a meeting with other aid agencies in the country, the UNHCR said it would concentrate on delivering relief aid to former conflict areas in the east of the country, where it has long dealt with displaced people. Another aid agency more used to dealing with the aftermath of the conflict between the Tiger rebels and the Sri Lankan government, Handicap International, said in a statement that it was also shifting to help quake victims. The agency, which normally helps with war wounds and to treat amputees, was providing first aid and transporting corpses in the hard-hit eastern region around the town of Batticaloa. |
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