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MEDIA ADVISORY – March 12, 2003
Relief supplies airlifted to Jordan for possible refugee crisis
World Vision officials accompanying the flight available for interview
- The United Nations expects some 600,000 refugees to flee Iraq in the event of conflict, 10,000 of them to Jordan.
- Relief organizations are moving personnel and relief supplies to the region to assist refugees as quickly as possible.
- The Christian humanitarian organization World Vision is working with other organizations in the region to respond to a variety of refugee scenarios.
AMMAN, Jordan – World Vision will airlift emergency relief supplies tomorrow from its warehouse in Italy to Amman, Jordan, to prepare for a humanitarian response to a looming war in Iraq.
The shipment, loaded onto a chartered Ilyushin heavy transport plane, includes three 10-ton trucks and thousands of blankets, collapsible water containers and plastic sheets for use as temporary shelter.
Dave Robinson, who oversees World Vision’s work in the region, stressed that the decision to send supplies does not mean that war is inevitable, but rather that the agency believes it is important to be prepared to meet emergency needs.
“Even now, we desperately hope for a diplomatic solution to this crisis,” he said. “At the same time, it would be naïve to ignore the terrible possibility of war.”
World Vision plans to work in conjunction with the Jordanian Red Crescent and Caritas Jordan to distribute relief supplies to Iraqi refugees. Remaining supplies would be held for relief operations inside Iraq. World Vision also plans to assist refugees fleeing to Syria, Iran and Turkey.
WHO: Dave Robinson, World Vision’s regional vice-president for the Middle East and Eastern Europe.
Steve Matthews, Communications Manager for World Vision’s relief team.
(Both will accompany the airlift.)
WHAT: The arrival of relief supplies in Amman
WHEN: Thursday, March 13, 1-3 p.m. (EST)
WHERE: Available by phone from Amman
CONTACTS: mediainfo@worldvision.org
END
Founded in 1950, World Vision is a Christian humanitarian organization, serving the world’s poorest children and families in nearly 100 countries.
