Iraq Population Movement
Conditions continue to worsen in Iraq due to the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria’s offensive efforts launched In June. Due to the severity of the situation, the Inter-Agency Standing Committee, the forum of UN and non-UN humanitarian organizations that coordinates international humanitarian assistance, declared a Level 3 emergency. This level of crisis calls for immediate response, as the conflict has displaced roughly 2 million people since the beginning of the year.
The American Red Cross has deployed three disaster specialists to assist relief efforts in Dohuk governorate, one prominent destination of displaced persons in Iraq. One disaster specialist is currently acting as a logistics delegate for the IFRC assessment and coordination team to provide support to the Iraqi Red Crescent population movement relief operation. The American Red Cross made a financial contribution in support of the Iraqi Red Crescent to strengthen its response capacity in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and to provide essential assistance to displaced persons.
Israel, Occupied Palestinian Territories
Ongoing hostilities have further worsened the serious situation of civilians in Gaza, which is already dealing with chronic difficulties largely due to restrictions on the movement of people and goods and the fragility of infrastructure and basic services. The American Red Cross has contributed $150,000 to support immediate and medium-term effects of the conflict on affected communities. It has also assisted with activities such as disaster preparedness and first aid training.
Syria Humanitarian Crisis and Population Movement
As of June 12, 2014, the crisis in Syria has left 9.3 million people (43% of the total population) in need of humanitarian assistance. The crisis has claimed the lives of more than 162,000 and between 6.5 and 7.6 million people are internally displaced in Syria. There are also 2.8 million Syrian refugees in neighboring countries, including Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon, Egypt and Turkey. Over one third of individuals who need humanitarian assistance are located in besieged or hard to reach areas.
Previously, the American Red Cross contributed $1.3 million to support relief operations in Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq and Turkey. In response to recent developments, the American Red Cross is contributing an additional $1 million to the Syria Crisis. This contribution will be used to support the Syrian Arab Red Crescent in providing food assistance to those affected by the conflict and support information management for operations.
This contribution will also be used to support the International Committee of the Red Cross in its food and relief distributions in Syria. The American Red Cross will provide 6,000 kitchen sets to the Syrian Arab Red Crescent for distribution and deploy one cash specialist to assist the Jordanian Red Crescent with its cash transfer program.
West Africa (Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia) – Ebola Outbreak
As of August 22, more than 2,600 suspected or confirmed cases have been recorded and more than 1,400 reported deaths have been linked to Ebola in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. The World Health Organization has declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.
The American Red Cross recently contributed $2.5 million to the West Africa Ebola Outbreak response, resulting in a total contribution of $2.6 million since the response began. The contribution will strengthen Red Cross organizations in the area and will support investigation, control and public awareness efforts.
The American Red Cross also continues to provide remote information and mapping support to the relief efforts. In addition to informational support, two IT and Telecommunications specialists have been deployed to Sierra Leone to provide telecommunications support and Internet to the Red Cross emergency health team.
Read more about the Red Cross’ Response to Disasters
Volunteers around the World Aid Ebola Victims – 8/5/2014
Red Cross Engages Traditional Healers to Raise Ebola Awareness – 8/5/2014
Red Cross Network Helps in Iraq as Families Search for Safety – 8/11/2014
Taken from American Red Cross International Update
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