Some American Aid Is Reaching Somalia

I am pleased to see coverage of the tragic situation in Somalia in the article "Somali Civil War Takes Stiff Toll on Civilians," Dec. 16. I am dismayed, however, to discover that no mention was made of the relief efforts of the Los Angeles-based International Medical Corps (IMC) in southern Somalia. The article asks, "Where is the US?" A US presence is providing humanitarian aid in Somalia.The IMC Somali project is financed by a grant from the Office of US Foreign Disaster Assistance and is supplemented by private donations of medical services and equipment. Since the end of October, the IMC, a nonprofit organization, has been the only American group providing emergency medical aid in the war-ravaged capital city of Mogadishu. As one of our nurses told us last week, "There are not enough hours in the day to take care of all the wounded." A general lack of health-care services and medical supplies in Somalia has added to the disastrous conditions. Due to the severity of the fighting, which can only be described as mass slaughter, the IMC project faces a shortage of medical and other supplies across the board. Nancy A. Aossey, Los Angeles President & CEO, International Medical Corps

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