UNITED NATIONS - Moamer Kadhafi's Libya government has guaranteed "safe passage" for foreign aid workers into zones under its control and to let a UN mission go to the besieged city of Misrata, UN officials said Monday.
The safe passage was part of an accord on humanitarian access to the capital and other Libyan cities secured in Tripoli on Sunday by UN humanitarian chief Valerie Amos, said deputy UN spokesman Farhan Haq. "Our understanding is that the government of Libya has agreed to facilitate a humanitarian presence in Tripoli," Haq told a briefing. "They have agreed to facilitate the provision of equipment for international staff and also to allow entry of international staff. "The Libyan government said it would ensure an unimpeded access through the Tunisian border into Libya up to Tripoli and said it would ensure safe passage for humanitarian workers to areas where the government of Libya is in control." The Kadhafi government also agreed to let a United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs mission go to rebel-held Misrata, which has been under siege for several weeks, said UN humanitarian spokeswoman Stephanie Bunker. Aid workers and doctors say several hundred people have died in the western city since the battle for control erupted in February. International governments and private groups have scrambled to evacuate thousands from the town. "We want to assess the situation and determine the needs with our own eyes," Bunker told AFP.