Thursday May 10, 2007
Gregg DeGuire/WireImage.com
Three groups working to assist displaced people in the Darfur region of Sudan are richer today, thanks to Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt.
The UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Jolie, 31, and actor/partner Pitt, 43, are donating $1 milion to the humanitarian effort via their Jolie-Pitt Foundation. The money will go to the UN Refugee Agency, the International Rescue Committee and the international NGO, and SOS Children's Villages. Each agency plays a key role in Darfur and neighboring Chad, providing assistance to the region's millions of displaced people who are living in camps.
Jolie has visited the region three times, most recently in late February. On that trip, she met staff from SOS Children's Villages at the Oure-Cassoni refugee camp and was "struck by the sense of hope she encountered and by the widespread desire for peace-keepers to be deployed in eastern Chad."
UNHCR's Regional Representative for the United States and the Caribbean, Michel Gabaudian, said today: “This generous donation comes just months after Angelina Jolie made a personal visit to a refugee camp in Chad and it shows, once again, her and Brad Pitts’ commitment to helping refugees and the displaced. As Goodwill Ambassador, Ms. Jolie’s continued support of UNHCR and those we seek to help is a powerful force in ensuring they are not forgotten.”
Echoing Gabaudian's sentiments was George Rupp, president of the International Rescue Committee, who added: "This donation will make a real difference in the lives of thousands of vulnerable people. We are grateful to Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt for remembering them."