Geneva 3 March 2011 - Based on a rapid assessment of very-high resolution satellite imagery recorded this morning at 11:26 am local time, UNOSAT released the first satellite based report focusing on people moving away from Libya to flee violence. The report shows several thousands of people located primarily within the Ra´s Ajdir border crossing facility along the Libyan-Tunisian border. The imagery shows multiple concentrations of people and different waiting and processing sites, as well as long lines of people and small vehicles waiting to move beyond the border.

The report comes only days after the publication by UNOSAT of two complete atlases of Benghazi and Tripoli and it is part of an on-going satellite monitoring programme by UNITAR/UNOSAT of the Libyan crisis being done at the request of UN agencies in charge of humanitarian relief and coordination and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). UNOSAT is engaged in acquiring a large number of satellite imagery over relevant areas of this humanitarian crisis so that information can be constantly updated.

The latest UNOSAT maps and reports can be accessed from UNOSAT section of the website.