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The last group of Tanzanian refugees who fled political disturbances at home and took refuge in Kenya in January began returning to the islands of Pemba and Zanzibar on Tuesday morning, a spokesman for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) told IRIN on Monday.
Confirming the repatriation in a press release issued on Tuesday, UNHCR said two flights would leave Dadaab refugee camp in northeastern Kenya for Pemba that day, while another two flights would operate from Dadaab to Zanzibar on Wednesday. Once the flights have been completed, all the remaining Tanzanian refugees in Kenyan camps will have gone home.
In total, 2,000 refugees fled Tanzania at the end of January following clashes between security forces and protesters over elections. All the refugees were supporters of the opposition Civic United Front, who feared government reprisals for their part in political demonstrations. Nearly 200 of the refugees, who were transferred to Dadaab in May, decided last month to leave the camp and travel to the Somali capital, Mogadishu.
This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions
