Monday, September 26, 2011
The renowned Iranian actress, Katayoun Riahi has paid a visit to the famine stricken Somali refugees in the North Eastern Province of Kenya.
Riahi is staying in the border city of Garissa with Iranian photographer Ghogha Bayat to express her sympathy and offer her own financial aid to the Somali people, Mehr News Agency reported.
Riahi also dedicated Mehr Afarin Panah-e Asr Institute's help to the Somali refugees in Garissa.
The warm and hopeful look of these people who host you with smile amid all the misery was the most impressive part of my trip, Riahi said.
The Iranian Red Crescent Society's (IRCS) has so far sent 15 humanitarian aid convoys to Somalia weighing about 600 tons as part of an initiative to supply Somalis battling with starvation and shortage of food.
The IRCS has also set up nine makeshift camps in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, housing about 5,000 families. There is also a mobile clinic in each camp providing Somalis with healthcare services.
Iran also mounted a photo exhibition in Tehran in an attempt to raise funds for the famine-stricken people of Somalia.
The drought and famine have affected more than 11.8 million people across Somalia, Kenya, and Ethiopia. Somalia has been the hardest-hit country in what is being described as the worst drought in the Horn of Africa in 60 years. The UN says 3.2 million Somalis are in need of immediate life-saving assistance.
According to UN reports, about 3.7 million people in Somalia are on the brink of starvation and millions more in Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Uganda have been affected by drought.