Search
  1. Home
  2. East Africa
  3. Kenya

Refugees ordered to leave Mandera

    NAIROBI

    Kenyan authorities have ordered some 10,000 Somali refugees who have been living in the Kenyan northeastern border town of Mandera to leave the area, the BBC reported on Wednesday. Local officials told the refugees that they had a week to either go back home or move to existing refugee camps in Kenya, the BBC said. Local officials said the presence of so many people in Mandera had placed a burden in the town’s infrastructure.

    Humanitarian sources said the refugees had fled into Kenya a month ago after fighting broke out in the border town of Bulo Hawa, southwestern Somalia, among rival factions of the Marehan clan. Many were staying with friends and relatives in the Kenyan town, or had set up temporary shelters; others were “commuting” to and from Bulo Hawa in the hope that security would improve. At least four people have been killed by land mines near Bulo Hawa since the fighting erupted, said the source.

    [The Horn of Africa Update issued on Wednesday 9 May, was erroneously dated in the text, Tuesday, 8 May. IRIN apologises for this error.]

    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

    Share this article

    Our ability to deliver compelling, field-based reporting on humanitarian crises rests on a few key principles: deep expertise, an unwavering commitment to amplifying affected voices, and a belief in the power of independent journalism to drive real change.

    We need your help to sustain and expand our work. Your donation will support our unique approach to journalism, helping fund everything from field-based investigations to the innovative storytelling that ensures marginalised voices are heard.

    Please consider joining our membership programme. Together, we can continue to make a meaningful impact on how the world responds to crises.

    Become a member of The New Humanitarian

    Support our journalism and become more involved in our community. Help us deliver informative, accessible, independent journalism that you can trust and provides accountability to the millions of people affected by crises worldwide.

    Join