Sunday, September 19, 2010

Somali Rights Group Condemns Al Shabaab’s Humanitarian Aid Ban

Displaced people in Somalia are facing a food shortage after the al Qaeda inspired extremist group al Shabaab banned aid agencies. Now, Elman Peace & Human Rights Center has condemned al Shabaab’s decision to chase away international aid agencies from Somalia.


“It is deplorable al Shabaab’s move, which they had recently prohibited three international relief organizations operating in Somalia, as displaced Somali people are in poor conditions, in makeshift sites just outside of the capital city” Ali Yasin, deputy chairman of Elman Peace & Human Rights Center told a local radio station.

The criticism comes less than two days after al Shabaab announced it had banned three international aid organizations - Mercy Corps, Med-Air and Horn Relief - from operating inside Somalia, accusing them of promulgating Christianity and western ideology in the war-torn nation. Last month, al Shabaab banned World Vision, Adventist Development and Relief Agency, and Diakonia - largely for the same reason.

“This will effect and harm tens of thousands of Somalis who fled from their how houses as a result of endless fighting” Ali Yasin told Shabelle radio.

However, al Sahaab’s decision against aid agencies comes as the United Nations announced plans to increase its presence in Somalia. Al Shabaab has already imposed a ban on more than twenty aid organizations, including U.N.-backed aid agencies working in southern and central Somalia.

Relief agencies serving inside Somalia say aid to millions of Somalis is hampered by the danger that aid workers are faced with and a lack of respect for international humanitarian law by the parties to the conflict.

There are more than 1.4 million internally displaced people in Somalia, including 300,000 in Mogadishu alone.

Most of the displaced live in poor conditions in makeshift sites in southern and central Somalia, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

Source: www.allheadlinenews.com

No comments:

Post a Comment