Many countries and international organizations expressed their sympathy and condolences following the devastating quake in Haiti on Tuesday and urged the international community to offer aid to the Carribean country.

In a statement Director-General of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Irina Bokova said the serious damages caused by the Haiti quake were shocking and expressed her deep sympathy to the Haitian people.

Bokova said the UN body would do its best to help Haiti fight the disaster. She also expressed concern over the safety of the UNESCO staffers in Haiti who had lost contact.

The United Nations Organization Mission in DR Congo (MONUC) said in a statement that Alan Doss, Special Representative of UN Secretary-General in Democratic Republic of Congo, expressed, on behalf of all MONUC staff, deep condolences to the quake victims and people in the disaster areas, especially UN staff and the Congolese peacekeepers in Haiti.

On Wednesday, Spain, currently the rotating EU presidency, said in a statement that it was discussing the situation with EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton and other EU countries to initiate EU coordination mechanism for disaster relief.

Also on Wednesday the European Council convened an emergency coordination meeting on.

On Friday, the Council Working Group for Humanitarian Aid and Food Aid will discuss relief efforts for Haiti quake.

Meanwhile, the Spanish government said it would mobilize its agencies in Latin America and do its best to help with relief efforts by using its advantages in the continent.

The foreign ministry of Egypt, which is holding the rotating presidency of Non-Aligned Movement, said in a statement that the country was shocked by the damages in Haiti quake and expressed deep condolences to Haitian government and people.

Egyptian foreign minister Abul Gheit said in the statement he felt deep sorrow for the lost lives and damages in the quake and believed the Haitian government and people would rebuild their homeland with the timely assistance from the international community.

He reaffirmed the firm support of the Non-Aligned Movement and its continued efforts to urge the international community to help Haiti to get over the disaster.

The Rio Group, presided over by Mexico, expressed in a statement its deep condolences to the families of the quake victims, Haitian government and people and the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti.

A strong quake measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale struck Haiti on Tuesday, killing and injuring large numbers of people. Most of the houses in capital Port-au-Prince were damaged or collapsed. So far, 16 UN staffers have been confirmed dead in the quake. Many international organizations and countries have provided emergency aids to Haiti.

(Xinhua News Agency January 15, 2010)