Archive for February 11th, 2015

11/02/2015

Mounting Turmoil, Lawlessness in Libya

Human Wrongs Watch

A report produced jointly by the United Nations High Commission for Human Rights and the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) “paints a bleak picture” of the human rights situation in the country during 2014, the High Commissioner’s spokesperson said on 10 February 2015 in Geneva.

A girl looks out of her house window in Benghazi, Libya. Photo: UNSMIL

The report, which will be presented to the UN Human Rights Council in March, depicts a country suffering from increasing turmoil and lawlessness, inflamed by a multitude of competing, heavily armed groups and a broadening political crisis. Against such a backdrop, it calls for bolstering State institutions, urges accountability for rights violations and support for the ongoing political dialogue.*

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11/02/2015

Violence in Nigeria Sparks Major Exodus

Human Wrongs Watch

The spread of violent attacks across the border from northern Nigeria into Niger is causing widespread displacement and hampering efforts to provide humanitarian assistance in the area, a spokesperson for the United Nations food relief agency reported on 10 February 2015 .

A family in Diffa, Niger, after fleeing violence in northern Nigeria. Photo: OCHA/Franck Kuwonu

The second half of 2014 saw a major increase in the number of new arrivals in the Diffa region. While only 15,000 people had crossed the border in October, the total estimated number now stands at 125,000 people, spread out over more than 140 sites and villages, said Elisabeth Byrs of the World Food Programme (WFP)*.

The arrival of displaced people has seen the population of Diffa almost double, putting enormous pressure on people’s livelihoods and food stocks, in a region that had been struggling with drought for several years in a row.

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