Medical supplies to Iraq

30 tons of medical supplies bought with proceeds from Iraq's oil-for-food deal with the United Nations were airlifted to Iraq on Sunday, a UN official said yesterday.

Eric Falt, spokesman for Iraq's U.N coordinator, said a German plane carried the supplies to Habbaniya airport, 60 km (37 miles) west of Baghdad. He said it was the first time humanitarian goods arrived in Iraq by air since the oil deal went into effect in December 1996, Al Thawrah daily said today.

"The medical equipment brought by the plane is fragile. It is related to magnetic resonance imaging badly needed by Iraqi hospitals," Falt said.

The arrival of the plane and the unloading of equipment were inspected by health personnel from the world health organization in Baghdad, an Iraqi official said yesterday.