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Iraq aid situation 'precarious'
LONDON, England -- Aid agencies are warning of a serious humanitarian situation in Iraq as the number of war casualties rises and relief teams are unable to provide help. In an interview published Monday, the president of the International Committee of the Red Cross described the humanitarian situation in Iraq as "extremely precarious." Although the ICRC has representatives in Baghdad, Basra, and northern Iraq, the fighting has made it too dangerous for them to do their jobs, The Associated Press quoted Jakob Kellenberger as telling the French financial daily Les Echos. "It is an extremely precarious situation, and we remain worried," Kellenberger was quoted as saying. "The situation is preoccupying and we have to expect that it will become even worse." In addition, the World Health Organization predicts a "severe deterioration of the health situation during the days to come due to daily bombardment that results in damage of infrastructure and sharp rise in civilian casualties." WHO spokesman Fadela Chaib said "health workers are overwhelmed by injured and routine work is disrupted." James Morris, executive director of the World Food Programme, told CNN the situation in Iraq is still too unsafe for his teams to assess the needs of the Iraqi people. The WFP has sent a major convoy of trucks carrying 850 metric tons of wheat flour into Iraq, crossing the border from Turkey in what the agency described as a "test run" of that corridor. "We're uncertain as to the number of refugees have fled the country, and we're uncertain as to the needs of internally displaced people," Morris said. "We've prepared for as many as 2 million people in that category. As soon as it is safe, we will go in and do an assessment of the number of people at risk who need emergency food assistance." Morris said his teams would not go into areas unless they could be confident of their security and safety. "We won't put people at risk," he said. "By the same token, we will not go in with military protection. We are there representing the international ... humanitarian community." Peter Kessler, a spokesman for the U.N. High Commissioners for Refugees, said there has been no significant refugee movement into neighboring countries. The UNHCR has asked all governments to provide temporary protection to Iraqis. "No one should be returned to Iraq during war time against their will," Kessler said. British Defense Minister Geoff Hoon said humanitarian aid was continuing to arrive in Iraq through the port of Umm Qasr. Rations are being delivered, and a pipeline is delivering 1.5 million liters of clean water daily, sufficient for 160,000 people, Hoon said. In Doha, Qatar, U.S. Central Command spokesman Brig. Gen. Vincent Brooks said Monday there were "still very important (humanitarian) needs to be met" but that there had not been any humanitarian emergencies. The most immediate short-term goals were to return power and running water to areas without it, Brooks said. Copyright 2003 CNN. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press contributed to this report.
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