Three children killed in fire at IDP camp

At least three children were burnt to death when flames swept through an internally displaced persons (IDP) camp on the outskirts of the Somali capital, Mogadishu, early this week.

Witnesses and officials said the blaze destroyed hundreds of dwellings.

Local sources said the fire started late on Monday afternoon and spread quickly. The camp is situated in Mogadishu's Dainille district.

"The fire flattened more than 100 huts belonging to the IDPs and destroyed virtually all their belongings, including bedding, utensils and clothes. Some of the IDPs spent Monday night in the open and it was raining," a local witness said. Residents also lost their stocks of food.

"So far we have confirmed the death of three children, a boy of five years and two girls aged two and one. Some people were taken to hospital with superficial burns," Abdillahi Gabo, the camp headman, told reporters.

The camp is home to between 500 and 600 people, according to Dainille district head Bashe Mohammed, who said neighbours were responding to his appeal for humanitarian assistance for those affected by the fire.

"People have responded well to our appeal. Since Monday night we have received both food and nonfood items, including cooked food, jerricans, bedding, mats and even cash from residents. The store in the mosque is almost full," observed Hashi Aralle, an imam at a mosque close to the camp.

It was not immediately clear what sparked the fire, but residents suspect that it started in one of the huts, which are made of straw, sticks and plastic material.

On 26 June this year, at least 2,000 people were left homeless when fire gutted the Buul Eelaay camp for IDPs and returnees in the self-declared autonomous region of Puntland in northwestern Somalia.