Violence in Africa's Sahel region has sent more than 700,000 civilians fleeing their homes in Burkina Faso in the past year, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said in a press release on Friday
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 21st February, 2020) Violence in Africa's Sahel region has sent more than 700,000 civilians fleeing their homes in Burkina Faso in the past year, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said in a press release on Friday.
"In Burkina Faso, the latest attacks by militants on civilians and local authorities have been forcing a daily average of more than 4,000 people to flee their homes and search for safety since 1 January. So far, 765,000 people have already been displaced - more than 700,000 in the last 12 months. This is a 16-fold increase compared to January 2019. An estimated 150,000 people have fled in the last three weeks alone," the release said.
People fleeing the violence report attacks on their villages by terrorist groups killing, raping and pillaging. Terrified of these attacks, residents have left everything behind to find safety, the release added.
Attacks and displacement of tens of thousands of internal refugees also continues in other Sahel nations, including Niger and Mali, the release said.
