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Iran relief aid due in Japan imminently

Iran Materials 24 March 2011 10:57 (UTC +04:00)
A senior official at the Iranian Red Crescent Society (IRCS) says the IRCS's first consignment of humanitarian aid to quake-hit Japan is scheduled to arrive in the Japanese capital, Tokyo, on Thursday.
Iran relief aid due in Japan imminently

A senior official at the Iranian Red Crescent Society (IRCS) says the IRCS's first consignment of humanitarian aid to quake-hit Japan is scheduled to arrive in the Japanese capital, Tokyo, on Thursday, Press TV reported.

Dr. Mohammad Abbasi told Mehr news agency on Wednesday that the batch weighing about 18 tons would be sent to quake-stricken Japan by air.

He further pointed out that the shipment includes canned food and is worth some $ 57,000.

According to the Iranian official, the consignment was slated to leave for Tokyo on Wednesday and it would arrive in the quake-hit country on Thursday.

Abbasi added that Iran's relief aid was prepared for delivery to Japan upon a request form the Japanese government and the Red Cross and after the primary assessment of the situation in Japan's quake-hit regions by an Iranian team deployed to the country.

He also expressed the Islamic Republic's readiness to send more relief aid to Japan upon further requests from Tokyo.

The IRCS earlier dispatched an assessment team to Japan to determine the needs of people affected by the massive temblor and the ensuing tsunami that hit the Asian country on March 11.

More than 26,000 people have died or are presumed dead and a total of 2,766 others have also been injured in Japan so far. Hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced from their homes and have taken shelter in evacuation facilities.

The earthquake has become Japan's deadliest natural disaster since the 1923 Great Kanto earthquake that claimed the lives of more than 142,000 people.

The direct damage from the catastrophic quake and the resulting tsunami in Japan has been estimated at $310 billion, the world's costliest natural disaster.

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