10 Sudanese die of thirst during attempt to sneak into Libya

The Sudanese Ministry of Interior announced in a statement yesterday that 10 Sudanese citizens died of thirst after they lost their way in the desert during an attempt to sneak into Libya.

The ministry's statement also referred to the rescue of 186 others lost in El-Niam valley, 300 km west of Sudan. Then it confirmed that the travelers attempted to cross into Libya illegally, without obtaining any formal papers.

Meanwhile, U.N.'s Food and Agriculture Organization warned in its report yesterday of the danger threatening the nutrition situation in southern Sudan. The report confirmed also that the escalating lack of nutrition in the south is due to the civil war which has resulted in an unstable security situation and badly damaged infrastructure, causing difficulties in distributing humanitarian aid.

Bad weather has also also interrupted the delivery of supplies, the report said.

"Another poor harvest this year would have serious implications for the food security of the population," the report said, citing a lack of cultivated areas because of a population that has been displaced by war and possible insufficient rainfall as threats to the food supply.

However the report sounded a hopeful note, saying, "The situation is expected to improve following the Government's agreement with the UN Secretary-General in early May to allow additional relief flights into most areas of the South. "