The Government is to set aside €5 million for humanitarian assistance to help alleviate the suffering of Iraqi civilians.
The Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Mr Tom Kitt, made the announcement last night after he met key aid agencies.
The funding will be distributed through non-Government organisations (NGOs) and other international agencies, all of which have been invited by the Government to submit proposals outlining how they think the monies should be spent. The funds will be drawn from the State's €23 million budget for this year for global humanitarian assistance.
Mr Kitt, who has also met the United Nations and the Red Cross, said he was particularly concerned with the humanitarian fall-out facing women, children, the elderly and displaced. The challenges facing the international community would be met through a co-ordinated effort by all agencies and NGOs in the regions, he said. Lessons learned in Afghanistan would prove valuable.
"I believe that the Irish NGOs that I have met today and the UN can, given the opportunity and space to carry out their work, make a real difference in meeting the emergency needs of the innocent Iraqis caught up in the conflict," Mr Kitt said.
He was anxious to receive proposals from NGOs and other agencies on how the allotted €5 million could be best spent.
Trócaire welcomed the aid package. However, it said it hoped monies would not be diverted to Iraq at the expense of other vulnerable areas around the world.
Its deputy director, Mr Eamon Meehan, said: "We remain hopeful that this is the first phase of essential additional funds for recovery and in Iraq's reconstruction."
Other NGOs said as the war continued, they were increasingly concerned about the numbers of children at risk. Plans by US and British forces to use aerial bombardment in such cities means 100,000 children are at risk in Basra alone, according to the Children's Rights Alliance (CRA), an international NGO.
With Iraqi infant mortality rates 2½ times greater than before the first Gulf War, the CRA said any disruption to water supplies or to the Iraqi government-run food distribution system would have serious implications.
Oxfam Ireland said it was "extremely concerned" at unconfirmed reports the Iraqi regime planned to confiscate the houses and property of any civilians who fled their houses during the anticipated assault on Baghdad.
Oxfam's Ireland director, Dr Brian Scott, urged all parties involved in the conflict to uphold international humanitarian law.
UNICEF Ireland said it was particularly concerned for the welfare of children. Its executive director, Ms Maura Quinn, said following electricity and water cuts to many regions in Iraq, people were now at greater risk from diseases.
