Welcome to the Weekly Worldwide Wrap-Up, in which we consolidate the international Red Cross and Red Crescent news into one list of bite-sized links for you…

[The place names link to maps so that you can get a quick idea of the region.]

HAITI: Haitian Red Crossers evacuate the sick and wounded from shanty towns in Port-au-Prince. Under the neutrality and impartiality of the Red Cross emblem, they are even able to help in gang territory where many others dare not venture.

INDONESIA: Mangrove trees act as natural wave breakers. That’s why hundreds of Indonesian Red Volunteers – together with World Ocean Conference delegates – planted 2,000 of them along Mokupa Beach.

BURUNDI and TANZANIA: More than 60 albino people have been killed because of a superstition that their body parts bring good luck. Authorities in both countries have offered protection for albino people, opening shelters that the Red Cross is supporting.

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO: New outbreaks in armed hostilities lead the ICRC to distribute food and other aid to 11,000 vulnerable people.

PAKISTAN: Water, electricity and communications are still scarce in Swat. Among their many duties, ICRC and Pakistan Red Crescent Society workers are restoring family links, running field hospitals, co-running and/or supporting camps for 43,000 displaced people and preparing for the monsoon.

ZIMBABWE: As food shortages affect prisons, the ICRC has begun distributing food to 6,300 detainees.

GLOSSARY:
ICRC = International Committee of the Red Cross
IFRC = International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies

Filed under: International