Liberman: Israel is prepared to extend aid to Nepal
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Home Front Command, operating under state of emergency, in search of possible Israeli injured, casualties.
By JPOST.COM STAFFPeople sit with their belongings outside a damaged temple in Bashantapur Durbar Square after a major earthquake hit Kathmandu, Nepal April 25, 2015.(photo credit: REUTERS)
Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman was debriefed Saturday by Yaron Meir, Israel's ambassador to Nepal, on the situation on the ground following the powerful earthquake that struck the region early morning.Meir told Liberman that his staff members are safe and working from the yard of the embassy's compound due to damage sustained to the building. He said that since roads are blocked, vehicular movement is impossible.The embassy's staff is circling the area by foot, according to Meir, extending help to the injured while searching of Israelis in the area.Liberman instructed the Foreign Ministry to dispatch employees from other Israeli embassies in the region to assist the staff in Nepal.He said that a plane would be sent to evacuate Israelis from Nepal as soon as the local airport, currently shut down, reopens."Israel extends its hand to Nepal and is prepared to help in any way possible," Liberman said in a statement.The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is still looking into the possibility that Israelis were injured in the earthquake early Saturday morning, and is operating under a state of emergency."We are considering dispatching rescue forces from New Delhi to Katmandu, as we did with the Nepali avalanche in October," the ministry said in a statement.The Home Front Command is also operating under a state of emergency, coordinating arrangements and efforts with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.A spokesman for Magen David Adom EMS said the organization was examining the possibility of sending emergency medical supplies and teams to Nepal.