Thousands on brink of starvation

WFP today appealed to the warring parties to observe an immediate ceasefire to allow aid agencies to assist hundreds of thousands of Freetown civilians trapped in their homes for more than a week with little or no food or water. “People at risk cannot be expected to survive much longer under such terrible duress,” WFP Regional Manager Paul Ares said in a statement received by IRIN, adding that thousands of residents were on the brink of starvation. Since the start of the fighting in Freetown 10 days ago, shops and markets have remained closed, imports have been interrupted and the capital has been cut off from its major source of food supplies, it said. WFP said negotiations for a political settlement must include guarantees for “continued and secure humanitarian access” to all war-affected people. Meanwhile, UN Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs Sergio Vieira de Mello said the withdrawal of ICRC staff from Freetown on Wednesday at the request of a representative of the Sierra Leonean government was “most regrettable” given the ICRC’s role in alleviating human suffering. It was essential that those involved in the Sierran Leonean conflict recognize the neutrality of international humanitarian organisations and agencies, Vieira de Mello was reported as saying in a UN press release issued yesterday.