Red Crescent leaves Fallujah

2004-12-05 21:44

Baghdad - The Iraqi Red Crescent said on Sunday that it had left Fallujah on US military orders after the aid agency was told the former insurgent stronghold was not safe.

"Multinational forces asked the IRC to withdraw from Fallujah for security reasons and until further notice," the organisation's spokesperson Ferdus al-Ibadi told AFP.

Ibadi, speaking in Baghdad, had said earlier that the agency left of its own free will, but she said she was only informed after the IRC left the city that it had been told to do so by US marines.

The IRC distributed food, water and blankets to about 1 500 people in the city, whose population was in the region of 300 000 before a massive assault by US-led forces began on November 8.

"We went today to Karma and in two days' time we will visit refugees in other places around the city," said Ibadi, referring to a town about 5km north of Fallujah.

The US military said the IRC had requested a military escort out of the city and that it had secured the organisation's headquarters immediately afterwards.

"All military-age males in the IRC building were properly vetted and approximately eight were detained," said US marine Major M Naomi Hawkins.

The US military had since Thursday been interviewing military-age males who came to the IRC for food aid as well as testing them for gun powder, a potential sign of insurgent activity, an AFP correspondent said.

The marines confirmed that they had cordoned off the building on Thursday when they began vetting males.

There had been friction between the IRC and the US military as the agency was prevented from distributing aid throughout the city.

- AFP