According to a news release issued by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the UN and its partners in Libya are preparing a response to a new complex and acute humanitarian situation with shifting needs of the target population in Sirte, which sits on Libya’s southern coast.

“We have tailored our response to meet the increasing needs of the people requiring protection, psychosocial support, mine action, health and food aid,” said UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Libya, Ali Al-Za’tari.

“We need to scale up assistance and we urgently need additional resources. I urge donors to act now to support the people of Sirte at this time of greatest need,” he added.

According to the agency, the complex and acute humanitarian situation has developed in Sirte city as people have been returning back to the city but at the same time, new displacement has been triggered due to military operations against the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL or Da’esh) terrorist group.

“Those who fled the area report severe shortages of food and medicines, looting and confiscations by ISIL terrorists, and serious rights violations, including public beheadings, ‘crucifixions’ on scaffolding and abductions,” noted the news release.

The release further said that the humanitarian community in the country expects that people will continue to return, and that the number is likely to increase once the Government of National Accord forces announce military success.

They anticipate that by the end of the year, some 79,400 people will be residing in Sirte municipality and certain districts of the city, although much of the city itself will likely remain inaccessible for several months.

The Sirt Flash Appeal covers the needs for four months, from September throughout December 2016.