The Secretary General of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), Professor Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, has assigned an OIC team to visit Yemen on 27 October 2008 on a mission led by the Director of Humanitarian Affairs. The team will tour the regions affected by the recent floods that hit the provinces of eastern Yemen.
The mission will inspect the damage and assess first hand the humanitarian needs of the victims and the extent of the relief work requirements. The mission will provide urgent assistance to flood victims.
In the meantime, Amb. Al-Mannan received in his office on 26 October 2008 the Consul General of the Republic of Yemen, H.E. Mohamed Al Kotaish in Jeddah. The two officials discussed the ways and means to coordinate efforts slated to provide humanitarian aid to the victims of floods in eastern Yemen.
Amb. Al-Mannan extended on behalf of the OIC Secretary General his condolences to the Yemeni government and people following the tragic disaster. The OIC also expressed solidarity with the Yemeni people in these difficult circumstances.
For his part, H.E. Al Kotaish offered on behalf of Yemeni President Abdullah Saleh his gratitude to the Secretary General, expressing his great appreciation for the OIC initiative. He also expressed the readiness of the Yemeni Consulate to coordinate efforts with the OIC Department of Humanitarian Affairs in order to develop the right mechanisms to provide assistance to the victims.