The international Red Cross said Friday it is appealing for a further 4.2 million Swiss francs (3.7 million dollars, 2.6 million euros) for aid projects in Pakistan this year, a 25 percent increase on the initial budget.
The extra money is needed to meet the emergency needs of around 60,000 people displaced by clashes between government forces and armed opposition groups in the North West Frontier Province and surrounding areas, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said in a statement.
"The situation is evolving rapidly and remains unpredictable. In order to address the needs of the people who fled the fighting, we need to be able to move quickly and be flexible," said Pascal Cuttat, the head of the ICRC delegation in Pakistan.
The initial aid budget for 2008 was 16.6 million Swiss francs. The ICRC has already distributed essential items such as tarpaulins, blankets and cooking pots to people in improvised camps, and will now focus on other aspects of the relief effort such as food distribution and securing water and sanitation services to stave off the threat of water-borne diseases. Pakistan's forces have launched a number of major military offensives in recent weeks against militants in the northern Bajaur district, which is thought to be an al Qaeda stronghold.
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