The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has called on all parties to the violence in Las’anod to guarantee safe and unimpeded access to people affected by the conflict.

Development Diaries reports that several weeks of continuous violence have left more than 170 people dead, over 600 wounded, and thousands displaced from their homes.

The escalating conflict is yet another crisis facing Somalia, a country already grappling with a severe drought and security challenges.

‘People in Las’anod urgently need humanitarian assistance, and we are acting as quickly as possible to bring it to them’, Head of the ICRC delegation in Somalia, Juerg Eglin, said in a statement.

More than 50 schools have also been closed, affecting the education of over 15,000 children.

Also, women and girls are reported to be at high risk as reported cases of rape and other forms of sexual and gender-based violence are said to be on the rise.

While the ICRC is scaling up its response to the situation, misinformation has become a challenge online as some social media posts are inciting blockage of life-saving aid.

‘Misinformation spread online can have a serious real-life impact on the security of our teams and our ability to respond to the urgent needs’, the ICRC Head of Operation in the region, Merick Alagbe, said.

‘All our teams are working together in a strictly neutral way to ensure help gets to Las’anod’.

It is understood that a team of ICRC staff is in Las’anod assessing the humanitarian needs of the population affected by the violence.

Source: ICRC

Photo source: Riyaad Minty