Obama visits L'Aquila quake zone

L'AQUILA, Italy, July 8 (UPI) -- U.S. President Barack Obama, visiting the L'Aquila, Italy, earthquake zone Wednesday, said the United States provided aid to the Abruzzo region in several ways.

Obama toured the zone with Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi on the first day of the Group of Eight summit in L'Aquila. The earthquake killed nearly 300 people and left tens of thousands homeless.

Through a public-private partnership, the U.S. government and the National Italian-American Foundation are helping to address the educational and human resource needs of the University of L'Aquila and its students, the White House said in a statement. The support includes providing scholarships for University of L'Aquila students to attend U.S. universities for a year while the Italian university is rebuilt and providing modular facilities that can be used for classrooms, labs and offices.

In addition, the White House said the U.S. State Department arranged for summer sports camps and recreation activities for displaced children living in tent camps, is sponsoring educational exchange opportunities and assisting with libraries and archives in L'Aquila with professional exchanges and reference material donations.