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Haiti 'orphans' may have parents US to resume Haiti victim airlift
(about 3 hours later)
A charity in Haiti say some of the children identified as orphans by a group of Americans who were taking them out of the country may have parents. The United States will resume within hours emergency evacuation flights for critically injured Haitian quake victims, the White House has said.
SOS Children's Villages said at least one of the 33 youngsters, a little girl, insisted her parents were alive. The airlifts stopped last Wednesday because of what Washington described as "logistical issues".
The 10 Americans, who are now in police custody, said they were taking them to an orphanage in the Dominican Republic. Doctors warned scores of people would die if the flights did not resume soon.
Meanwhile, the White House said the US military would in hours resume airlifts to the US for injured quake victims. Meanwhile, some of the Haitian children identified as orphans by a group of Americans who were taking them abroad may have parents, it has emerged.
Haiti imposed new controls on the movement of children following the 12 January earthquake, because of fears that orphans were particularly vulnerable to being abducted and sold for adoption. Haiti imposed new controls on the movement of children following the 12 January earthquake that killed up to 200,000 people.
Officials fear that orphans are now particularly vulnerable to being abducted and sold for adoption.
Also on Sunday, the UN's World Food Programme (WFP) began a large-scale aid distribution at 16 sites across Haiti's capital, aiming to feed two million people.
Only women will be allowed to collect the 25kg (55lb) rice ration, enough to feed a family for two weeks.
'On track'
White House spokesman Tommy Vietor said in a statement on Sunday evening: "Having received assurances that additional capacity exists both here and among our international partners, we determined that we can resume these critical flights."
Dr Barth Green, Dr Cathy Burneit and Dr David Pitcher describe difficulties in Haiti
"The flights are on track to resume in the next 12 hours. Patients are being identified for transfer, doctors are making sure that it is safe for them to fly, and we are preparing specific in-flight paediatric care aboard the aircraft where needed."
Mr Vietor said the US government had worked with international partners, NGO's and US states to increase capacity to treat the Haitian patients.
Hundreds of patients with spinal injuries, burns and other wounds have been flown on US military planes to America since the quake. Most of them have been treated in Florida.
But the US halted the so-called mercy flights on Wednesday.
A White House spokesman told the BBC the move was due to "logistical issues", not over medical costs as had been reported earlier.
Last week, Florida Governor Charlie Crist warned President Barack Obama's administration that the state's "healthcare system is quickly reaching saturation, especially in the area of high-level trauma care".
Mr Crist also asked the federal government to activate the National Disaster Medical System, which usually pays for victims' care in domestic disasters.
'Hungry and dehydrated''Hungry and dehydrated'
The five men and five women, from Idaho-based charity New Life Children's Refuge, were arrested on Friday night. On Sunday, SOS Children's Villages international charity said at least one of the 33 Haitian youngsters whom the Americans had tried to take out of Haiti, a little girl, insisted her parents were alive.
The mistake we made is we didn't understand additional paperwork was required Laura SilsbyNew Life Children's Refuge Haiti holds US 'child smugglers' BBC Caribbean In pictures: Quake aftermath Our understanding was that we were told by a number of people, including Dominican authorities, that we would be able to bring the children across Laura SilsbyNew Life Children's Refuge Haiti holds US 'child smugglers' BBC Caribbean In pictures: Quake aftermath
They were stopped while travelling on a bus with the children on the border with neighbouring Dominican Republic. Charity spokesman George Willeit told journalists the girl said she had believed she was being taken to a boarding school or summer camp.
The Americans said the youngsters had all lost their parents in the quake. Mr Willeit also said many of the children had been found to be in poor health, hungry and dehydrated.
But George Willeit, a spokesman in Port-au-Prince for SOS Children's Villages, which is now looking after the children, says at least one of them, a little girl, said her parents were alive.
He told journalists the girl said she had believed she was being taken to a boarding school or summer camp.
Mr Willeit said many of the children had been found to be in poor health, hungry and dehydrated.
One of the smallest - just two or three months old - was so dehydrated she had to be taken to hospital, he added.One of the smallest - just two or three months old - was so dehydrated she had to be taken to hospital, he added.
Haitian authorities said none of the children had documentation or proof they were actually parentless.Haitian authorities said none of the children had documentation or proof they were actually parentless.
'Abduction' 'Mistake'
"This is an abduction, not an adoption," Haitian Social Affairs Minister Yves Christallin told AFP news agency. The 10 Americans, who are now in police custody in Port-au-Prince, said they were taking them to an orphanage in neighbouring Dominican Republic.
The leader of the Idaho-based group, Laura Silsby, said the arrests were the result of a mistake. The five men and five women, from Idaho-based charity New Life Children's Refuge, were stopped while travelling on a bus with the children on the border with neighbouring Dominican Republic.
AT THE SCENE Karen Allen, BBC News, Port-au-Prince In the grounds of a former children's hospital, in one of the worst-affected areas of Port-au-Prince, there is a queue of about 200 women snaking around the building. It's all very orderly - the women are coming in and collecting a bag of rice which is to be shared between two families. They said the youngsters had all lost their parents in the quake.
Some distance away, behind security tape, the men are being held back. The reason is that, in the past, food distribution points have triggered confrontations and scuffles. Laura Silsby, the group's leader, said the arrests were the result of a mistake.
The UN estimates that up to a third of the population will be reliant on some kind of relief in the months to come.
"Our understanding was that we were told by a number of people, including Dominican authorities, that we would be able to bring the children across," she said."Our understanding was that we were told by a number of people, including Dominican authorities, that we would be able to bring the children across," she said.
"The mistake we made is that we didn't understand there was additional paperwork required.""The mistake we made is that we didn't understand there was additional paperwork required."
But the BBC's Rupert Wingfield-Hayes, in Port-au-Prince, says the regulations are very clear - each case of child adoption must be approved by the government.But the BBC's Rupert Wingfield-Hayes, in Port-au-Prince, says the regulations are very clear - each case of child adoption must be approved by the government.
Even before the earthquake, he adds, child-smuggling was a massive problem in Haiti, with thousands of children disappearing each year.Even before the earthquake, he adds, child-smuggling was a massive problem in Haiti, with thousands of children disappearing each year.
Meanwhile, the American military is to resume within hours emergency evacuation flights to the US for critically injured Haitian earthquake victims.
The airlifts stopped last Wednesday reportedly because some American hospitals were reluctant to take more patients from the quake zone, in a row over medical costs.
Women only
Doctors at a field hospital in Port-au-Prince had told the BBC that scores of patients would die if the evacuations did not resume soon.
Dr Barth Green, Dr Cathy Burneit and Dr David Pitcher describe difficulties in Haiti
White House spokesman Tommy Vietor said in a statement on Sunday: "Having received assurances that additional capacity exists both here and among our international partners, we determined that we can resume these critical flights."
Hundreds of patients with spinal injuries, burns and other wounds have been evacuated to the US since the quake, which killed up to 200,000 people.
Also on Sunday, the UN's World Food Programme (WFP) began a large-scale aid distribution at 16 sites across Haiti's capital, aiming to feed two million people.
Only women will be allowed to collect the 25kg (55lb) rice ration, enough to feed a family for two weeks.
The WFP says it has reached 600,000 people with over 16 million meals since the quake.