Bangladesh: more than 700 receive aid after violence in Khagrachari
02-05-2011 News Release 11/101
Dhaka (ICRC) – The Bangladesh Red Crescent Society (BDRCS) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) are distributing aid to victims of the violence among local communities that broke out on 17 April in the district of Khagrachari.
"After the violence of last week, our objective is to ensure that the people affected can start rebuilding their livelihoods as soon as possible," said Christoph Vogt, head of the ICRC delegation in Dhaka.
Staff and volunteers from the BDRCS and the ICRC are distributing aid to 720 people. Each family is receiving food items (rice, oil, salt and pulses), cooking equipment and various household and hygiene items.
Immediately after the clashes, the BDRCS carried out an assessment to ensure that assistance would match the most urgent needs. The distribution took place a few days later, once the situation became less dangerous.
The ICRC is an impartial, neutral and independent humanitarian organization that works in close cooperation with the Bangladesh Red Crescent Society. In November 2010, the ICRC has signed a Headquarters' Agreement with the Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh that further enhanced its status in the country.
For further information, please contact:
Rumana Binte Masud, ICRC Dhaka, tel: +880 1713 452688