Sri Lanka – Complex Emergency Fact Sheet #7 (FY 2009)

From late October through May 7, approximately 196,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) moved from the contested zone into Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL)-controlled territory, according to the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). The figure includes more than 194,000 IDPs in camps in Vavuniya, Mannar, Jaffna, and Trincomalee districts, and approximately 1,700 IDPs in hospitals.

On May 7, an International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)-chartered ferry delivered approximately 25 metric tons (MT) of food provided by the U.N. World Food Program (WFP), as well as medical supplies, to the contested zone and evacuated approximately 500 sick or injured IDPs and accompanying caregivers. ICRC noted that security constraints had prevented ICRC evacuations by boat since April 30, and reported heavy fighting near the medical assembly point. Since February 10, ICRC has evacuated approximately 13,000 IDPs from the contested zone. Read more and download report ...