Violence in northern Mali forces over 20,000 into exile
This is a summary of what was said by UNHCR spokesperson Adrian Edwards – to whom quoted text may be attributed – at today's press briefing at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.
UNHCR has deployed emergency teams to countries surrounding Mali to help meet the needs of some 20,000 people who have been forced to flee fighting in northern Mali. Most of the displaced are in Niger, Burkina Faso and Mauritania.
Fighting between rebel Tuareg groups and governmental forces in the Azawad region of northern Mali began in mid-January.
In the past three weeks, at least 10,000 people are reported to have crossed to Niger, 9,000 have found refuge in Mauritania and 3,000 in Burkina Faso.
In Niger, most of the new arrivals are from Menaka in Mali. Some have settled very close to the volatile border. Many of the new arrivals are sleeping in the open and have little access to shelter, clean water, health services, and food. People are scattered mainly in villages in Tillaberery, Ouallam, and Filingue districts, in the north of the country. Sinegodar, a village in Tillabery district, is hosting over 5,500 Malians, with one sole water point for the entire refugee and local population.
While most of those who recently fled Mali are Malians, recent arrivals in Niger also include nationals of Niger who had been living in Mali for decades. Many have been crossing the border between the two countries regularly to find grazing land for their cattle.
Local communities along the border, affected by the food crisis themselves in the Sahel, are sharing their resources with the new arrivals. The authorities have also distributed food. Four additional UNHCR staff are already in Niger and more are on their way. We plan to send aid for 10,000 people from our stockpiles in the region.
Our office in Ouagadougou, in Burkina Faso also reported the arrival of some 3,000 Malian Tuaregs following attacks on their homes and businesses in the Malian capital Bamako and in the nearby town of Kati last week. Many of the new arrivals are staying with host families in Ouagadougou and Bobo Dioulasso, 320 kilometres south-west of the capital. Other new arrivals have been reported in the north west of the country, especially near Djibo, in Soum province. An inter-agency mission, including UNHCR, is scheduled to go there by the end of the week to assess the needs of the people.
Meanwhile in Mauritania UNHCR has sent several missions to the village of Fassala, in the region of Hodh el Chargi 3km from the border with Mali, where over 9,000 people have arrived since 25th January. The mainly ethnic Tuareg Malian refugees come from the region of Léré on the other side of the border. They told UNHCR that they fled fighting between Government forces and rebel Tuareg fighters, fearing retaliation by army troops.
The Mauritanian authorities, with the support of UNHCR, are taking care of the new arrivals. Medical services are being offered by the local health clinics and water is being trucked in by the authorities. UNHCR Mauritania distributed 15-day food rations and non food items to cover the urgent needs of 5000 refugees in the refugee site of Fassala. Key needs identified are food, shelter and other basic items. UNHCR will strengthen its presence in Mauritania by fielding an emergency support team.
Fighting between the Tuareg liberation movement MNLA (Mouvement National de Liberation de l'Azawad) and governmental forces resumed on 17 January in Mali, breaking a 2009 agreement that had officially ended the Tuareg rebellion.
For further information on this topic, please contact:
- In Dakar: Helene Caux on mobile +221 77 333 12 91
- In Geneva: Fatoumata Lejeune-Kaba on mobile +41 79 249 3483
- In Geneva: Sybella Wilkes on mobile +41 79 557 9138
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More Malians fleeing to Mauritania and Burkina Faso
2 Mar 2012 ... of Malian refugees who say they are fleeing insecurity in their hometowns in northern Mali and the risk of further fighting between rebel Tuaregs and the Malian army which began in mid-January. ...... -
UNHCR seeks $17.6 million for its Mali and Niger repatriation programmes
30 May 1997 ... In the early 1990s, some 150,000 people, mostly ethnic Tuaregs and Moors had fled an armed conflict in Mali and found refuge in Mauritania, Algeria, Niger and Burkina Faso. During roughly the same ...... -
As tens of thousands flee, UNHCR ups assistance to Malian refugees
20 Mar 2012 ... GENEVA, March 20 (UNHCR) - The UN refugee agency said Tuesday it is boosting assistance to the thousands of Malians who have been uprooted by fighting between Tuareg rebels and Malian forces since ...... -
Refugees from Mali continue to arrive in neighbouring countries
2 Mar 2012 ... Fighting in northern Mali between government forces and a Tuareg rebel group, which erupted in mid-January, has forced ten of thousands of people to flee their homes and to seek safety in neighbouring ...... -
The State of The World's Refugees 1997: A Humanitarian Agenda - Chapter 4: Return and Reintegration
1 Jan 1997 ... ... Elsewhere in Africa, in the first half of 1997, the repatriation of some 150,000 Malian Tuaregs from ... Refugees, op cit, pp. 50-51. Box 4.1 The Tuareg repatriation Little noticed by the ...... -
UNHCR Global Appeal 2013 Update - Mauritania
1 Dec 2012 ... By the end of August 2012, more than 100,000 Malians, mostly Tuaregs, had sought refuge in Mauritania, while the influx continued at a rate of several hundred arrivals per day. In coordination with ...... -
UNHCR seeks $12.9 million for 1996 repatriation of refugees from Mali and Niger
18 Jun 1996 ... Between 1990 and 1994, some 150,000 Malians, the majority of them Tuaregs, fled an armed conflict and went to neighbouring countries. At about the same time, 15,000-20,000 Tuaregs were forced to leave ...... -
UNHCR deeply concerned by deteriorating situation in Mali
3 Apr 2012 ... The majority of the refugees are Tuaregs, but there are also ethnic Peuls, Arabs and Bambara. ... for a negotiated peace between the government and Tuareg rebels in the north faded after the coup. ...... -
Barbara Hendricks calls for aid during visit to Malian refugees in Burkina Faso
9 Jul 2012 ... fighting between government troops and Tuareg rebels as well as the activities of Islamist militias. ... One refugee, a 62-year-old Tuareg called Aichatou, said she had been separated from her sons, with ......