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Two Israeli tourists thought missing in Burma cyclone found unharmed
By Barak Ravid, Haaretz Correspondent
Tags: Burma, aid, Israeli tourists
Two Israeli tourists feared missing in Burma after the recent cyclone were located on Thursday, unharmed. 26-year-old Amit Efrati of Tzur Hadassah was found safe and sound and 23-yar-old ma'ayan Kalo contacted his family after leaning that he was thought missing.
An Israeli rescue team had already left for Peru to search for the two.
Eight other Israelis in Burma contacted the Foreign Ministry to notify them they were unharmed.
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The Foreign Ministry is sending $100,000 in initial emergency food and medical supplies to survivors of the deadly cyclone that battered Myanmar over the weekend, killing over 22,000 people.
The Israeli aid is being sent in coordination with the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee.
A United Nations official declared Burma's cyclone-stricken Irrawaddy delta a "major, major disaster" Wednesday with corpses floating in flooded areas and enormous challenges in getting aid to the neediest victims.
International aid began trickling into military-ruled Burma, but much of the Irrawaddy delta, where most of the 22,464 reported victims perished, has remained cut off since Cyclone Nargis hit early Saturday.
The Foreign ministry is planning to organize a larger aid shipment in the next few days, and is helping the members of aid teams for several Israeli non-governmental organizations obtain visas to enter Burma.
In addition, the ministry has made contact with eight of the estimated 10 Israelis who were in Burma when the cyclone hit. It is still trying to reach the other two, but says its inability to do so is likely due to the collapse of Burma telephone lines, and the erratic functioning of the Israel Embassy caused by the difficulties posed by the natural disaster. Ministry officials said that at this point there is no cause for concern.
The Foreign Ministry is calling on Israelis not to go to Myanmar any time soon, citing flooding, food supply difficulties, and the collapse of essential services such as electricity, water and telephone communication.
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Preventive war is not war!!!!Counter-terror is not terror
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