U.N. Envoy Backs Iraqi Oil Sales
UNITED NATIONS — A senior U.N. envoy for the Persian Gulf urged the Security Council on Monday to allow Iraq to sell oil to pay for desperately needed food, medicine and other humanitarian needs.
“There is a feeling that we are up against a serious humanitarian crisis which could degenerate into a catastrophe unless we do something about it quickly,†Prince Sadruddin Aga Khan said.
Sadruddin, in charge of humanitarian aid in the Gulf, spoke at a news conference after briefing the Security Council’s Sanctions Committee on Iraq’s needs. He said in a report that Iraq immediately needs $2.6 billion for four months’ worth of humanitarian aid.
“It is obvious that the Iraqi people are being punished right now as a result of sanctions,†he said.
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