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13:50 GMT
Press Conference held by Assistant Secretary General and Head of the Social Affairs Sector at Arab League Haifa Abu Ghazaleh, and Secretary General of Arab Red Crescent and Red Cross Organization (ARCO) Saleh Al-Tuwaijri
CAIRO, Sept 14 (KUNA) -- The Arab League on Thursday called on the international community to take immediate and rapid action to provide humanitarian support to mitigate effects of the earthquake that struck Morocco and the storm's aftermath in Libya.
This was in a joint press conference held by Assistant Secretary General and Head of the Social Affairs Sector at Arab League Haifa Abu Ghazaleh, and Secretary General of Arab Red Crescent and Red Cross Organization (ARCO) Saleh Al-Tuwaijri.
The Council of Arab Ministers for Health is also working to provide urgent health aid to Tunisia, Somalia, Comoros, Lebanon and Yemen, she pointed out, noting that last July the Council provided Sudan with 37 tons of medical supplies and life-saving medicines.
On his part, Al-Tuwaijri announced that an urgent appeal was sent today to provide USD nine million urgently to the Libyan Red Crescent Society to meet urgent needs in confronting the effects of the devastating storm.
A field survey was conducted in both Morocco and Libya in cooperation with the Red Crescent Societies in both countries to determine the needs and identify the numbers of victims, injured, missing and displaced people, he said.
He stressed to presence of Red Crescent Societies from Kuwait, Egypt, UAE and Qatar in Libya.
Al-Tuwaijri urged Arab countries suffering from repercussions of climate change, and those already hosting large number of refugees and displaced people, to update emergency plans to natural disasters. (end)
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