|
UN rushes aid as
security situation in Somalia deteriorates.
(Somalia, January
12,
2008 Ceegaag Online)
The United
Nations is stepping up its efforts to help Somalis forced to
flee their homes due to the violence engulfing the Horn of
Africa nation, where security continues to deteriorate.
Nearly
40,000 people have fled the capital Mogadishu in recent
weeks, bringing the total number of those displaced by the
ongoing fighting since the end of last October to over
294,000, according to the UN refugee agency (UNHCR).
Some 1,600
internally displaced persons (IDPs) who left their homes in
the 1990s have been given 24 hours to vacate a compound of
the Mogadishu polytechnical college where they have been
living, but have not been provided with an alternative place
to settle.
The UN
World Food Program (WFP) and its partners have supplied
monthly food rations to nearly 200,000 people along the
corridor between Mogadishu and the near-by town of Afgooye,
where many people have fled.
The
agency’s program in the capital is now fully operational,
providing 50,000 meals a day through its 10 kitchens to
vulnerable people trapped in Mogadishu.
Clashes
between the Ethiopian and Transitional Federal Government (TFG)
forces on one side and anti-Government elements on the other
– both in Mogadishu and in other regions of the country –
are contributing to a worsening of the security condition.
In the
capital, fighting erupted in areas where Ethiopian troops
were conducting a house-to-house weapons search, while
elsewhere, more than one dozen civilians lost their lives
when a security operation was held in an area where
thousands of IDPs sought refuge.
The UN is
particularly concerned about the rising number of incidents
targeting humanitarian organizations, such as the
kidnappings of staff, invasions and looting of
non-governmental organization (NGO) facilities and
warehouses.
On his
recent two-day mission to the Puntland region, the UN
Humanitarian Coordinator in Somalia has stressed that safety
guarantees are crucial for humanitarian workers,
underscoring the key role of local authorities and
communities in ensuring their safety.
Last month,
the Security Council called on all sides in Somalia to use
peaceful means to consolidate peace in the country. In a
statement, the 15-member body urged “all Somali parties to
reject violence and… to enter into substantial dialogue
aimed at achieving a full and all-inclusive national
reconciliation.
UN
www.ceegaag.com
webmaster@ceegaag.com |
