Informing humanitarians worldwide 24/7 — a service provided by UN OCHA

Somalia

Somalia: Situation Report - 23 Nov 2007

Main Developments

Several thousand civilians abandoned Mogadishu during the week as the security situation worsened. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported more than 200,000 people have left, leaving entire neighbourhoods in the capital nearly empty since intense fighting began on 27 October. About 60% of Mogadishu's population, or an estimated 600,000 people, remain displaced in and out of the capital since February.

In Afgooye, where most of the people have fled, 70 settlements hosting an estimated 200,000 people have been erected and the living conditions continue to cause alarm among the humanitarian workers who are doing their best to respond to the crises despite the security challenges. While a UN inter-agency mission visited just a few of the many sites along the 30km road from Mogadishu to Afgooye, they noted critical needs in the settlements including temporary shelter materials, utensils, toilets, water supply, healthcare and livelihood interventions.

Ongoing response for malnourished children along the Afgooye corridor includes an Outpatient Therapeutic Programme (OTP) run by Medicins Sans Frontieres (MSF) - Swiss and a Mother and Child Health centre run by the Somali Red Crescent Society (SRCS). Both organisations are identifying acutely and severely malnourished children and referring them to the centres for treatment. Nutrition services are also taking place in Hawa Abdi, Ceelasha and Km13 settlements. In its latest nutrition update, the Food Security Analysis Unit (FSAU) says the rates of acute malnutrition in the Shabelles have not deteriorated further but remain close to or above emergency threshold levels of 15%, with continuing high rates of severe acute malnutrition. This is likely due to the harvest in July which increased access to food, as well as intensified humanitarian interventions by agencies since May 2007.

Elsewhere, WFP food aid was distributed to 90,954 beneficiaries in Wanlawein, Lower Shabelle, as well as to 10,400 people who fled from Mogadishu in Kismayo.

In terms of security incidents reported in Afgooye this week, a prominent Somali activist was accidentally shot during a distribution on 15 November. Ms. Madina Mohamud Elmi was a women's rights activist who led a network of women's groups in Mogadishu. She had been assisting newly displaced IDPs at the time of the accident and tragically, she later died at a Mogadishu hospital. On 18 November at least four civilians were killed and more injured following indiscriminate shooting by TFG forces, in response to an explosion triggered by a landmine. Several of the members of the convoy were killed in the blast.

Africa Union troops were attacked on the night of 17 November, following media reports that a member of the Islamic Courts Union military wing said Ugandan forces should be fought. Earlier this year, five Ugandan soldiers were killed when a roadside bomb hit their convoy in Mogadishu. A number of others have been wounded in separate attacks.

Meanwhile, civil society organisations including media have continued to encounter difficulties in executing their work. On 19 November, one of the oldest Human Rights organisations, Elman, was closed down by authorities for allegedly spreading 'exaggerated and false information'. The closure came a day after the organisation released reports of numbers of people killed in Mogadishu since October. Three media stations; Shabelle, Banadir and Simba remain closed since last week. These closures have been widely condemned and are part of a worrying trend of shrinking space for local civil society organisations.

Two WFP humanitarian cargo ships docked safely at Marka port on 19 November following the escort by French Navy Vessels assigned to protect them from pirate attacks. The ships were carrying some 3,000 tons of food coming at a critical time when Somalis are experiencing the worst conflict and humanitarian emergencies.

Somaliland and Puntland

As part of the UNHCR's return programme for Somalis from Djibouti to Somaliland, the final phase of the voluntary repatriation helping some 1,800 refugees return by the end of the year started on 20 November. A convoy of 13 trucks transported 210 Somaliland refugees from Ali Addeh Camp located 120km from Djibouti city to the Djibouti-Somaliland border. The 1,800 refugees are one the last groups living in Djibouti having fled from Somaliland more than 16 years ago after the collapse of the Said Barre regime in 1991 and the ensuing civil war. The return programme was suspended in March 2006 to allow for electronic registration of all refugees in Djibouti. The operation started in 2002 and has helped repatriate 19,400 Somali refugees.

In response to people displaced recently following fighting between Somaliland and Puntland in the disputed Sool region, the International Committee of Red the Cross (ICRC) distributed non-food items including tarpaulins, jerry cans, two sets of clothes (each) for women and men. The distribution targeted 4,542 households in Buhoodle, Laas Caanood, Boosame, Taleex and Xudun districts in Puntland.

For Further Information, contact: Rita Maingi on +254 734 800 120 - maingir@un.org

OCHA SOMALIA
7th Floor, Kalson Towers, Crescent Street, off Parklands Road, P.O. Box 28832, 00200 Nairobi, Kenya
Tel No: (254-20) 3754150-5; Fax No: (254-20) 3754156
http://ochaonline.un.org/somalia

Disclaimer

UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
To learn more about OCHA's activities, please visit https://www.unocha.org/.