Hiiraan Online

Sporadic fighting between Ethiopian/Transitional Federal Government (TFG) forces and anti-government elements continued throughout the week in addition to house-to-house weapon search in a bid to rid the city of firearms. These activities seriously hampered access of civilians to basic social services, such as health care, as some districts were rendered nearly impassable. As a result of sporadic shelling in residential areas as well as roadside bombs, about 300 people were admitted with war wounds in the last three weeks, with the number of deaths unconfirmed.

With limited options of survival, some of the remaining people in Mogadishu have moved to relatively safer areas in and out of the city. Based on reports from partners in the field, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) recorded movement of about 172,000 people since the start of intense fighting on 27 October. Of these, an estimated 85,000 have gone along the 30 km Mogadishu/Afgooye road. To date, the estimated number of IDPs in Afgooye is 190,000. More than half a million people have fled Mogadishu since February this year and with the persistent trend of violence, these figures could continue to rise.

Three radio stations were closed by authorities during the reporting period, further restricting freedom of the press. Shabelle Radio was shut down on 12 November, followed by Radio Simba and Radio Banadir on 13 November by reportedly heavily armed troops. The closure of the three stations triggered reaction from various quarters including the UN Special Envoy for Somalia Ahmeduo Ould Abdallah who said “the media are helping people help themselves; hence the closures are something to be avoided at all costs.” The next day, on 14 November, Mogadishu's mayor ordered media groups and journalists to register with authorities within 30 days or be barred from working.

There has been a significant amount of Deyr (Oct-Dec) rains recorded in many parts of the country. In south central regions the rains have caused inaccessibility in some areas. Difficulty in accessing Kismayo on the Jilib/ Kismayo road has been experienced by travelers especially IDPs fleeing Mogadishu due to increased roadblocks by freelance militia. Reports indicate that many people are apprehensive about traveling as they are either robbed-off their belongings and incidences of rape for women and girls have been known.

The humanitarian community continues to respond to the vulnerable in the Shabelle regions. On the Mogadishu/Afgooye stretch, Oxfam Great Britain (GB) started the construction of 1,500 sanitation facilities within 26 IDP settlements. Additionally, through local partner HIJRA, the implementation of community mobilisation for Hygiene promotion and latrine construction started. In order to improve water supply services, UNICEF is supporting Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) partners to lay a pipeline to provide 250,000 people with at least 15 litres of potable water per person per day and an additional daily trucking of 600,000 litres. A course session on cholera prevention, protection, education and HIV/AIDS for participants from 33 settlements is being conducted by UNICEF and partners along the Mogadishu/Afgooye road while the same course is taking place in Afgooye town.

In Middle Shabelle, CARE International this week started food distribution in Adale and Aden Yabal districts where both host communities and recently displaced IDPs are in need of assistance. So far 3,991 of 7,000 targeted households have been reached.

Somaliland and Puntland

A UN inter-agency mission led by the Humanitarian Coordinator, Eric Laroche, went to Hargeisa (Somaliland) and Garowe (Puntland) to discuss with the respective presidents and the local authorities' relief efforts for people displaced by the recent fighting in disputed Sool region. An estimated 30,000 to 50,000 people fled Lasanod and its surroundings. Assessments conducted by NGOs and the UN estimate that up to 30,000 displaced people are vulnerable and in need of assistance.

Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) and shelter have been identified as the highest priority needs. Health facilities in the region (health posts and maternal and child health centers) will also need to be monitored and re-supplied due to the increased caseload; mobile health clinics may be required. An assessment to determine possible food aid needs is still ongoing. Large-scale distributions of non food items (NFIs), including the following materials: tarpaulin (for shelter), blankets, jerry cans, treated mosquito nets, rope, soap and cooking sets, commenced this week.

 
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