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| Africa Horn |
| UN: 90 000 refugees return to Mogadishu |
| 2007-06-02 |
| About a quarter of nearly 400 000 refugees who deserted Mogadishu during fighting earlier this year have returned to the Somali capital, the United Nations refugee agency said on Friday. But life in the war-scarred city was tough, with shortages of electricity and water, uncollected garbage clogging the streets and many businesses and schools shut, the agency said. "Living conditions in Mogadishu remain difficult for returnees as well as for those who stayed in the capital throughout the conflict," it said in a statement. Two rounds of vicious fighting between allied Ethiopian-Somali troops and Islamist-led insurgents sent residents fleeing the coastal city in droves earlier this year and killed at least 1 300 people, mainly civilians. The United Nations said 391 000 Somalis had abandoned the city since February, but 90 000 had returned in recent weeks during a relative lull in violence. |
| Posted by:Fred |