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Egypt

Egypt: Red Crescent support continues in North Sinai

by Rana Sidani Cassou, IFRC

The deadly attack on a mosque in North Sinai, Egypt, on 24 November killed more than 300 people and injured many more. It has also devastated hundreds of grieving women and children who face an uncertain future without the family breadwinner.

When the attack happened, the Egyptian Red Crescent Society (ERC), immediately rushed to the scene and deployed emergency response, medical and psychosocial support teams from Areesh, Ismaileya and Cairo to provide first aid and support medical teams in nearby hospitals.

More than a hundred staff and volunteers worked to distribute food, clothes, and psychosocial support services to survivors and families. Egyptian Red Crescent also contributed blood bags from all bloods groups in addition to 200 units of plasma and deployed a blood collection vehicle with 120 transfusion sets.

With the emergency response work completed, the Egyptian Red Crescent Society is now working to support the survivors and bereaved families.

It is estimated that almost all the men in Rawda village were killed, leaving their families in a precarious situation. The community already faced many economic challenges, and medium and long-term support will be needed to help the families restore their livelihoods and build their resilience.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) will be providing operational support to the Egyptian Red Crescent as it provides winter clothes for children and women and food parcels for 400 families for the coming two months, as well as replenishment of blood transfusion sets and continued provision of psychosocial support to survivors in North Sinai.