CHICAGO, IL (March 10, 2011) – Covenant World Relief (CWR) sent funds today to help provide medical kits and provide support for personnel for hospitals in east Libya.

A special fund also has been established through which Covenanters can donate additional assistance, said Director Dave Husby. Click here to donate now.

The money will be used by Medical Teams International (MTI) to purchase Interagency Emergency Health Kits (IEHK), which have been requested by the International Red Cross and the Tunisian Red Crescent.

The supplies are desperately needed, said Husby. “The situation is dire and getting worse.”

Each kit provides essential medicines and supplies necessary for treating up to 10,000 people for a three-month period, says Joe DiCarlo, director of international programs for MTI. The cost to purchase and ship each kit is $12,700.

Portland-based MTI works closely with CWR in several spots around the world and already has rushed more than $842,000 in medicines and supplies to save the lives of people caught in the crossfire of ongoing violence, DiCarlo says.

The shipments are being flown into Cairo, Egypt. From there, they are driven to Benghazi, the second largest city in eastern Libya, and distributed to two hospitals, says Husby.

A physician from Portland, Oregon, as well as three surgeons from Los Angeles and three from London, have traveled to the war-torn region and have been treating patients with the supplies, says DiCarlo.

The uprising against 40 years of dictatorial rule by Muammar Qaddafi has been the most violent challenge to that leadership. France has recognized the fledgling leaders of opposition groups as a legitimate government, and American officials are considering doing the same, according to multiple news reports.