JAPAN: Medical teams are operating out of hospitals and mobile clinics treating survivors, while other Japanese Red Cross teams focus on search and rescue and caring for the very large number of people in evacuation centers. As the number of people missing following the earthquake continues to grow, more languages have been added to the family links website to assist people anxious for news about loved ones in the disaster area. For more info, read our FAQs regarding the earthquake in Japan.

IRAQ: The ICRC has announced plans to expand its micro-grant initiative to help disadvantaged Iraqis start their own businesses and begin earning much-needed income.

GAMBIA: The ICRC has assisted 677 returnees from Libya.

LIBYA: One month after armed violence broke out, the fighting continues and is now spreading to the country’s most populated areas. The ICRC has transferred its staff in Benghazi to the eastern city of Tobruk, where it will continue to assist victims of the conflict.

SYRIA: The ICRC and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent have begun to distribute clean drinking water to more than 21,000 vulnerable people in drought-stricken governorates.