ALGERIA TO SEND SHIPMENTS OF HUMANITARIAN AID TO LIBYA

Alger, 2 Safar 1436/25 November 2014 (MINA)  – Algerian Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal confirmed that the Ministry of Solidarity has sent shipments of food to the residents of south-western Libya.

The residents are currently suffering from a severe shortage of food supplies due to the deteriorating security situation in the country, according to an Algerian local source.

Mr. Zubair Mohammad, a member of the local council in the Illizi province, near Algeria’s border with Libya, said: “The Algerian prime minister has asked the Ministry of Solidarity to prepare a humanitarian mission to transfer food to the residents of south-western Libya.”Anadolu Agency confirmed the reports as quoted by Middle East Monitor and Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA).

Mohammad added: “It was decided that the aid would be transferred under the sponsorship of the Algerian Red Crescent. The first shipment will be transferred over the border through the city of Ghat, Libya. Other major shipments are scheduled to arrive in cities such as Ghadames quite soon.”

Both Prime Minister Sellal and Mohammad have called on officials in Ghat to re-open the border between the two countries, which has been closed since May. The Algerian authorities initially imposed strict controls on the land border between Algeria and Libya, which extends to a distance of 1000 km, out of fear of infiltration and arms smuggling across the border.

The Algerian Ministry of Solidarity has previously sent aid shipments via the Algerian Red Crescent to residents in Northern Mali.(T/R04/R03)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)