On December 19, hostilities broke out between Transitional Federal Government (TFG)/Ethiopian and Council of Islamic Courts (CIC) forces, directly following two months of heaving flooding in the country. The fighting compounded the already deteriorating food security levels and health conditions. While the TFG and Ethiopians have consolidated control over South/Central Somalia, harassment, militias and bombardments continue to restrict movements of humanitarian workers and the civilian population. The health situation is critical, with the population afraid to travel to hospitals, and the majority of assistance suspended due to the insecurity.

It is estimated that 40,000 people were displaced due to fighting. Reports on refugee flows remain limited. The official closing of the Kenyan border on January 3 is compounding response efforts. As of the 3rd, the Kenyan government had forcibly returned approximately 400 Somali asylum seekers. The situation in the refugee camps is also deteriorating.

Meanwhile, U.S. air strikes in southern Somalia further complicate the humanitarian situation.

Even in these challenging conditions, many U.S.-based private voluntary organizations are delivering life-saving assistance to populations with critical needs. The InterAction members listed below are accepting contributions for assistance that they or their affiliates are providing to affected populations.

A regularly updated list of agencies responding is available at http://www.interaction.org/somalia/

InterAction has also developed guidelines on the most appropriate ways to help those affected by overseas disasters: http://www.interaction.org/disaster/guide_giving.html.

InterAction is a coalition of more than 160 US-based private relief, international development and refugee assistance organizations. InterAction members have agreed to abide by a set of standards to ensure accountability to donors, professional competence and quality of service.

ORGANIZATIONS RESPONDING TO THE CRISIS IN SOMALIA

ADRA 12501 Old Columbia Pike Silver Spring, MD 20904 800-424-2372 www.adra.org

Brother's Brother Foundation 1200 Galveston Ave. Pittsburgh, PA 15233 412-321-3160 www.brothersbrother.org

CARE 151 Ellis Street NE Atlanta, GA 30303 800-521-CARE www.care.org

Global Operations & Development / Giving Children Hope 8332 Commonwealth Ave. Buena Park, CA 90621 714-523-4454 www.godaid.org

International Medical Corps 1919 Santa Monica Blvd. Suite 300 Santa Monica, CA 90404 800 481 4462 www.imcworldwide.org

International Rescue Committee PO Box 98152 Washington, DC 20077-7355 1-877-733-8433 www.theIRC.org

Mercy Corps PO Box 2669 Portland, OR 97208-2669 800-852-2100 www.mercycorps.org

Mercy-USA for Aid and Development Somalia Relief 44450 Pinetree Drive, Suite 201 Plymouth, Michigan 48197-3869 800-55-MERCY (800-556-3729) www.mercyusa.org

Oxfam America Global Emergencies Fund 226 Causeway Street - 5th Floor Boston, MA 02114 800-77-OXFAM www.oxfamamerica.org

Relief International Somalia Emergency Fund 1575 Westwood Blvd., Suite 201 Los Angeles, CA 90024 800-573-3332 www.ri.org

Save the Children USA Horn of Africa Emergency Fund 54 Wilton Road Westport, CT 06880 800-728-3843 www.savethechildren.org

World Concern 19303 Fremont Ave N Shoreline, WA 98133 1-800-755-5022 www.worldconcern.org

World Vision P.O. Box 9716 Federal Way, WA 98063-9176 888-511-6548 www.worldvision.org

DETAILS OF ASSISTANCE BEING PROVIDED

ADRA (January 16) ADRA has been operating in Somalia since 1992 implementing emergency relief and development interventions in different sectors. Since then, ADRA has managed over 50 projects funded by different donors in 8 sectors namely: water; primary health care; education; food security; infrastructure; institutional capacity building; micro-enterprise development and emergency response interventions. Current ongoing projects include ADRA's energy project, basic education project, and ongoing water and sanitation projects. ADRA has also implemented a flood response program with the support of the Somalia Red Crescent Society. (Activities have been temporarily suspended due to unrest.)

Brother's Brother Foundation (January 16) BBF has ongoing work with partner organizations to distribute donated books and educational materials in Somalia. Additional donations are planned.

CARE (January 16) CARE distributes food and basic household items, supplies water, and provides basic health and sanitation services, benefiting more than 95,000 households in southern Somalia. CARE also works in Northern Gedo and Puntland to improve food security works and is also assisting tsunami survivors in Puntland. CARE has worked in Somalia since 1981, primarily on large-scale emergency relief and refugee assistance activities, construction of water facilities, primary health care, small-scale enterprise development, local institution building, primary school education, and agriculture. CARE has sub-offices in Puntland, Somaliland and Southern Somalia. Since 1991 CARE also operates relief programs for Somali refugees at camps across the border in Dadaab, Kenya. More than 30,000 additional refugees entered the Dadaab camps this year.

Global Operations & Development / Giving Children Hope (January 16) Global Operations & Development aka Giving Children Hope has been in the medical relief business for over 15 years, providing medical supplies, equipment, and medicine to needy hospitals and clinics throughout the world. Five 40' containers worth of medical items are standing ready to send to Somalia hospitals. The value of one such container averages around $250,00. Roughly $12,000 is needed for shipping and handling fees for each container.

International Medical Corps (January 16) IMC has worked in Somalia since 1991. Reacting to the current crisis, we are assisting internally displaced Somalis by improving access to medical care and providing items such as mosquito nets, blankets, and tarpaulins. IMC currently supports 129 health clinics in the Bay, Hiraan and Bakool regions, addressing the health needs of more than 800,000 people. IMC runs eight supplementary feeding programs, 44 health posts, and has enrolled over 4,800 malnourished children into its feeding programs. At the basic emergency obstetric care center in Huddur, scores of women have been treated. IMC has trained midwives and many traditional birth attendants. IMC will extend its current program and further help to improve the livelihoods of vulnerable households through cash for work activities while restoring vital water facilities.

International Rescue Committee (January 16) The International Rescue Committee is currently assisting refugees from Somalia at the Kebrebeyah Camp in the Somali region of Ethiopia. Preparations are now under way to provide aid for Somalian refugees at additional locations in Ethiopia.

Mercy Corps (January 16) Mercy Corps responded to the floods in NE Kenya and distributed shelter and water supplies to refugee-filled border towns on the Kenya side. Mercy Corps has been working in Somalia, specifically Puntland, for more than a year on economic livelihoods and civil society projects. As Somalia struggles to make social and economic progress amid insecurity within its border, Mercy Corps is identifying opportunities to develop and implement community-based interventions with local partners in conflict-affected areas.

Mercy-USA for Aid and Development (January 16) Mercy-USA for Aid and Development has established four supplementary feeding centers around the town of Jilib in southern Somalia. Mercy-USA's response is focused on healthcare, immunization, nutrition, supplementary food rations, water and sanitation and malaria prevention.

Oxfam America (January 16) Oxfam is currently working with local partner organizations in the region to provide communities with emergency medical supplies, essential household items, and water chlorination services, as well as distributing food in areas where food is not locally available.

Relief International (January 16) Relief International (RI) is a humanitarian non-profit agency that provides emergency relief, rehabilitation, development assistance, and program services to vulnerable communities worldwide. RI's East Africa program team is conducting a needs assessment, and has established a donation fund for relief for Somalia.

Save the Children (January 16) Responding to severe flooding and growing unrest in the Horn of Africa, Save the Children is distributing lifesaving supplies to families in the region, including 42 tons of blankets, mosquito nets, water containers and plastic sheets for temporary shelter. Relief experts on the scene say unusually heavy rains during the past two months have put up to 1.8 million children and family members at risk in parts of Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia. Save the Children is focusing its initial response efforts on the more than 80,000 Somali people in the region surrounding the Shabelle River, which at times has reached dangerous flooding levels.

World Concern (January 16) World Concern has long-term and emergency responses (including the current flooding), focusing primarily on water, sanitation and hygiene with a component of Leprosy Treatment and Prevention.

World Vision (January 16) World Vision is providing emergency food and survival items, along with programs in health, water and sanitation, food security, education and advocacy to children and families affected by the recent flooding and ongoing hunger crisis and conflict in Somalia.

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