Landslides, flash floods kill 11 in Nepal

Kathmandu_(dpa) _ Landslides and flash floods triggered by torrential monsoon rains across Nepal killed at least 11 people, media reports said Sunday.

In the worst incident, five people returning from work were killed when they were buried by landslide in Dhading district, just west of the Nepalese capital Kathmandu, Kantipur newspaper said.

At least four others were injured in the accident while another man was killed when he was swept by flooded river in the district.

Three people from the same family died their house under a landslide in Solukhumbhu district, about 200 kilometres north-east of the Nepalese capital Kathmandu.

Two more people were killed in Rautahat district in flash floods, the newspaper reported.

The country’s meteorological department said some places in southern and western Nepal had recorded up to 90 millimetres of rain in the past 24 hours triggering landslides and flash floods.

Last year, at least 150 people died in landslides and flooding across Nepal with more than 250,000 people displaced from their homes.

Copyright (c) dpa Deutsche Presse-Agentur GmbH

Kidnapping in Afghanistan: Two ACF humanitarian aid workers abducted

ACF halts relief operations to focus on securing safe return of staff members

Nili, Afghanistan — Two humanitarian aid workers for Action Against Hunger / Action Contre la Faim (ACF) were abducted Friday, July 18th at 1AM (local time). The kidnapping took place in the compound where the ACF team was sleeping. According to ACF knowledge, the two expatriates are alive.

The two kidnapped staff members, both French nationals, are part of a team of 250+ local and expatriate aid workers providing relief to Afghan communities at risk of acute malnutrition. They were kidnapped from the base in Nili (the capital of Daikondi Province), which is located in central Afghanistan, about 310 km from Kabul.

Action Against Hunger has suspended its current relief operations in Afghanistan, which last year benefitted more than 130,000 people. The organization’s primary concern at this point in time is securing the release of the two kidnapped staff members, and ensuring the ongoing safety of the rest of its team.

ACF in Afghanistan

Action Against Hunger/Action Contre la Faim (ACF) was originally founded in 1979 specifically to help Afghan refugees. In 1995, ACF launched its first relief operations within the country, starting in Kabul and Pansheer; it has continued to be one of the leading humanitarian aid organizations in Afghanistan to the present day.

About Action Against Hunger

Action Against Hunger / Action Contre la Faim (ACF), an international relief and development organization committed to saving the lives of malnourished children and families, provides sustainable access to safe water and long-term solutions to hunger. For nearly three decades, ACF has pursued its vision of a world without hunger by combating hunger in emergency situations of conflict, natural disaster, and chronic food insecurity.

Press Contact

Action Against Hunger – USA
James L. Phelan
Senior External Relations Officer, ACF-USA
Contact James Phelan
Direct: 212-967-7800 x108
Cell: 646-265-7796

Action Against Hunger – France
Lucile Grosjean
Chargé de communication, ACF-France
lgrosjean@actioncontrelafaim.org
Direct: + 33 1 43 35 82 22
Offsite/Weekends: + 06 70 01 58 34 / + 06 70 01 58 43

DUNIA KEMANUSIAAN condemned the abduction and seeks immediate release for the two humanitarian workers.  Armed group should be more responsible to engage only military personnel in their affairs – leave humanitarian and social workers with their daily routine job.