Somalia’s Story of Displacement

United Nations officials say more than 100,000 people are displaced in central Somalia following days of fighting between the government forces and a group opposing the region’s local administration. The clashes that began last week in Gurieel town in Somalia’s Galmudug federal state are reported to have killed at least 120 people, most of them soldiers or fighters. The fighting is between government forces and their former ally, Islamist group Ahlu Sunnah Wal Jama’a. Gurieel is the second largest town in Galmudug state and both sides want control of the town ahead of parliamentary elections. The aid agencies said health centers have been damaged in the conflict, reducing people’s ability to access health care. The U.N. also said a local humanitarian organization was targeted while doing their work, and one of its workers was killed. The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said 7.7 million Somalis will be in need of assistance in 2022, as conflict, unpredictable weather patterns and diseases continue to disrupt people’s lives.

SOURCE: VOA