FAMINE, TERROR, and DISEASE, no relief in sight

With 3.6 million souls at risk of starvation, Islamic militants are attacking aid convoys meant for famine relief. These attacks have prompted the Somali government and the UN to call for a special humanitarian force dedicated to protecting the convoys and to relocate thousands of people out of harm's way. The situation is dangerous at best. Even the government troops have been fighting amongst themselves as they load vehicles with food for the victims, underscoring the need for an international force to protect the shipments.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - Somalia is gripped in the worst drought its seen in 60 years, and Islamic militants have not shown any compassion for the people or their plight. On the contrary, they have expelled and banned aid organizations from helping the people in the regions they control, cut off supplies to regions they don't, and attacked aid convoys at every opportunity.

The widespread violence is being caused by the Al-Qaida backed Somali terrorist group, Al Shabab. Despite being defeated last week in their attempt to capture Mogadishu, Al Shabab continues to threaten the city with terrorist attacks which include frequent suicide bombings. Already fighting against the terrorists are government troops and an African peacekeeping force.

If Al Shabab takes the capital, they intend to establish a militant Islamic state and it is almost certain that all western aid organizations will be banned from the city resulting in a humanitarian disaster of monstrous proportions. Despite their recent defeat, they remain undeterred and continue to threaten the millions of refugees entering the city as the famine worsens.
 
While thousands of people have fled to camps in Mogadishu, many more have fled to neighboring Kenya. Despite a closed border status between the two countries, many cross anyway and end up in camps, mostly because they fear violence at the hands of Islamic militants in Mogadishu.

The world's largest refugee camp is in Kenya. The camp, Dadaab, was designed to accommodate 90,000 people when it was built over 20 years ago. Today it is home to nearly 500,000. And while its residents may have escaped Islamic militants and suicide bombings, they have encountered a new threat: Disease. Within recent days, a cholera outbreak has been confirmed and has already claimed 181 lives, mostly children. Similar outbreaks have been reported across Somalia, although reliable figures have not yet been gathered.
 
To address the problem, new camps are being hastily built near Mogadishu and in neighboring Kenya. Officials hope to relocate famine victims to the new camps as quickly as possible where conditions will be more sanitary and safe. Still, refugees are streaming into Kenya at the average rate of 1,500 per day.

The new camps can accommodate as many as 15,000 people, but at the current rate of influx, they will be filled in little more than one week and that's without moving people from other camps such as Dadaab. Until Al Shabab allows aid to move freely, throughout the country, the short term outlook remains deadly for millions of people caught between famine and terror.

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