UN agency brings relief supplies to people displaced by conflict in Libya

“The violence and insecurity in Libya is continuing unabated and has led to massive population displacements and an increase in humanitarian needs,” said Wagdi Othman, World Food Progamme (WFP) Emergency Coordinator for Libya.

He said, “As thousands of vulnerable people are displaced now, WFP is doing its utmost to support those people who have been left without sufficient access to food supplies.”

The trucks brought pasta, couscous, rice, and other food items to a warehouse operated by WFP's partner, Shaikh Tahir Azzawi Charity Organization (STACO), as the UN agency begins assisting 51,000 vulnerable Libyans displaced in the west of the country.

The agency aims to provide life-saving assistance to a total of 243,000 internally displaced people in the country over the next six months and has established a partnership with another Libyan charity to start food distributions in the coming days to families who have left their homes the country's east, especially Benghazi, which is the second largest city, and which has been hit hard by violence.

Since the beginning of this year WFP has reached 75,000 people throughout Libya with food assistance, but distributions were suspended in March and April due to lack of funding.

With WFP's emergency operation in Libya only 33 per cent funded, the organization needs to raise an additional US$14 million to ensure that its operation inside Libya continues uninterrupted.

Photo: OCHA/Jihan El Alaily