Korean Air sends emergency relief shipment to Libya

SEOUL, Sept. 18 (Yonhap) -- Korean Air, South Korea's largest airline, said Sunday that it sent a cargo plane carrying emergency relief supplies to Libya to help people suffering from civil unrest. The plane that left Incheon International Airport earlier in the day will head for Benghazi in the eastern part of the North African country to deliver medical supplies, food, basic necessities and power generators. The city is the second largest in Libya. The company said the country's finance ministry and the state-run Korea International Cooperation Agency provided the aid package in an effort to provide humanitarian aid to the country roiled by the popular uprising to end Moammar Gadhafi's 42-year rule. Related to aid sent to Libya, Seoul announced that it reopened its embassy on Sept. 8. The staff had been evacuated in late May. The South Korean government also said that companies are taking active steps to resume business operations once the current unrest settles. Before the unrest broke out, South Korean companies were engaged in eight major projects worth US$3.7 billion, all of which were halted. Bilateral trade, which reached $1.4 billion in 2010, has nosedived to $110 million coming into this year.