UN aid chief calls for pause in Libyan hostilities

PanARMENIAN.Net - UN aid chief Valerie Amos has called for a pause in hostilities in Libya to help ease the humanitarian crisis.

Baroness Amos told the UN Security Council that Misrata, the only rebel-held city in western Libya, was in a dire state and short of food and water.

Three-quarters of a million people have fled Libya since an uprising began against Col Muammar Gaddafi's rule. The UNHCR has called on all ships using the Mediterranean to be prepared to offer assistance to the often unseaworthy vessels carrying migrants from Libya to Europe.

Baroness Amos said the disruption caused by a combination of the conflict and sanctions was paralyzing the country. She called on the Security Council to ensure that all parties respected international law and she said the use of cluster bombs, sea and land mines, as well as aerial bombing showed a callous disregard for civilians.

“The conflict and disrupted supply lines had delayed the arrival of commercial goods,” she said. "Widespread shortages are paralysing the country in ways which will impact gravely on the general population in the months ahead, particularly for the poorest and the most vulnerable."

“There was only enough food left for a few months,” Amos said.

She renewed calls for money, saying an appeal for $144m (£88m) had only been half met, and more than that would be needed, BBC reported.