Aid agencies scramble to help displaced in Sri Lanka

The United Nations said Monday that over the past few days some 65,000 people had fled what had been the fighting zone in northeast Sri Lanka, bringing to 265,000 the number of internally displaced people, which it refers to as IDPs.

"This latest massive influx of people, who have endured extreme conditions, will put an even greater strain on the transit and IDP sites that are already buckling under the pressure of the existing IDP population," the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees said in a written statement.

The agency pledged to erect an additional 10,000 shelters to accommodate people streaming from the combat zone.

Humanitarian aid agencies scrambled Monday to offer help to the tens of thousands of people in need after Tamil separatists declared an end to their quarter-century struggle in Sri Lanka.

It reiterated its request for the Sri Lankan government to set aside land for the construction of emergency shelters, water and sanitation facilities and public buildings in Vavuniya, Jaffna, Mannar and Kilinochchi.

And it called on the government to improve conditions at 42 sites already hosting the displaced people, and to ensure adequate care and maintenance for them.