Red Cross concerned by crisis in Somalia

By Katie Nguyen

Geneva – Somalia is the world’s most worrying humanitarian crisis because of the scale of the needs there and limited scope for relief due to insecurity, the International Committee of the Red Cross said on Wednesday.

The ICRC has been present in the Horn of Africa nation since 1982, but has had to work to a large extent “under a remote control mechanism”, ICRC President Jakob Kellenberger said.

Anarchy and chaos in Somalia force the ICRC to run its operation there from neighbouring Kenya, with close contacts to its local Red Crescent affiliate and other aid organisations.

“If I had to choose one context which I’m mostly worried about in humanitarian terms but also worried about (in terms of) the limited possibilities for humanitarians to do their job – it’s clearly Somalia,” Kellenberger told a news conference.

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