UN says Somali violence uproots over 5,000 in Mogadishu

UN says Somali violence uproots over 5,000 in Mogadishu

By Daniel Ooko

NAIROBI, Oct. 18 (Xinhua) -- The UN refugee agency said an additional 5,500 people have been displaced this week from the capital of strife-torn Somalia, Mogadishu.

A news release from the UN received here Saturday said the figure brings the total number of those uprooted by the fighting between government forces and Islamic insurgents since September 21 to over 61,000.

The violence has reportedly killed 80 civilians and wounded hundreds more. It has also caused thousands to flee their homes, bringing the total number of people uprooted so far this year in Mogadishu to 160,000.

Aid agencies have been stepping up their efforts since the latest surge in fighting to assist those affected in the Horn of Africa nation, which has not had a functioning government since 1991 and is trying to cope with an already dire humanitarian situation due to a combination of conflict and drought.

The clashes that erupted last month in Mogadishu have been some of the worst violence to hit the city in over a year and a half, and began just weeks after the signing of a UN-brokered peace deal between the transitional government and the rebel Alliance for the Re-liberation of Somalia aimed at ending the fighting.

Some 3.2 million people in Somalia, or around 43 percent of the population, are in urgent need of food and other humanitarian assistance.

The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) and its partners are continuing to provide safe drinking water to over 100,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs), according to the latest update provided by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

They have also now provided emergency school tents and foundations for 20 classrooms enabling an access to education for another 1,000 children, along the corridor between Mogadishu and the town of Afgooye, bringing the total number of beneficiaries to15,000.

In addition, some 370 teachers from Gedo, Bay and Bakool regions were trained this week in management, educational psychology, emergency education, nutrition and HIV/AIDS by the UNICEF. The training is expected benefit around 70,000 children through improved education service delivery.