HUMANITARIAN MISSIONS SHOULD BE AWARE OF RISKS, SAYS DR MAHATHIR

SERDANG (Malaysia), Sept 5 (Bernama) -- Organisers of humanitarian missions
should be aware of the risks they may face, especially in a place like Somalia
where there is no strong government, said former prime minister Dr Mahathir
Mohamad Sunday.

"If you go, you must know the dangers involved," he told reporters at his
Aidilfitri open house here Sunday.

Dr Mahathir's comments came in the wake of the death of BernamaTV cameraman
Noramfaizul Mohd Nor, 39, after he was shot Friday while travelling in a
four-wheel-drive vehicle with other Malaysian media personnel.

They were in Mogadishu to cover the humanitarian aid mission in famine-hit
Somalia by the Putera 1Malaysia Club.

He noted that Somalia was not a stable country where people were fighting
each other.

Saying that what had befallen Noramfaizul was very unfortunate, he took the
opportunity to convey condolences to Noramfaizul's family.

The open house was attended by, among others, Malaysian Crime Prevention
Foundation vice-chairman Lee Lam Thye and popular singer Siti Nurhaliza Tarudin.

-- BERNAMA