The Red Cross said today it had begun airlifting food supplies to refugees in Darfur, saying a rising number of attacks on aid convoys made it too risky to move the food by road.
A chartered Russian plane had left Khartoum early today carrying the first shipment of a planned 4,000 tons of food aid.
The Red Cross plans to operate 12 flights a week for the next two months to Nyala and El-Fasher, Darfur's main centres.
From there, the supplies of sorghum, lentils and cooking oil will be trucked into rural Darfur where whole communities are in need of humanitarian assistance, the Red Cross said.
In a statement, the Red Cross said the airlift had been prompted by dwindling food supplies and the growing number of people dependent on food aid.
"This situation is underscored by increasing insecurity on the roads from Khartoum to Darfur where attacks on aid convoys are on the increase," the group said. Full Story at Ireland On-Line June 4, 2005.
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