UN calls for protection of civilians in Sahel Region

By Felix Tih

ANKARA (AA) - The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) on Thursday called for a greater protection of civilians caught up in violence between the army and armed groups in the Sahel and Lack Chad regions.

In a statement, the UNHCR said thousand of people flee their homes and villages on daily basis since March 29 when security forces from Chad, Nigeria and Cameroon launched a military operation against armed groups in the region.

''The safety of the displaced population and their host communities must be a priority for all sides involved in this conflict,'' said Aissatou Ndiaye, Deputy Director for UNHCR's Bureau for West and Central Africa.

''Too many civilians in the Sahel and Lake Chad Basin have already paid a high price and should not be made to suffer more,'' Ndiaye added.

She said attacks and counter-attacks in the region were constantly pushing populations into deeper misery, risk annihilating any advances in building their resilience.

Nearly 50,000 people, including women, children and the elderly, have been displaced in the region this year, according to the UN agency.

Last week, the Nigerian Army killed at least 105 insurgents in counter-terror operations against Boko Haram and Islamic State of West Africa Province.

Early April, the Chad government announced that nearly 1,000 terrorists had been neutralized in the operation against Boko Haram in the western part of the Central African state.

Both the Sahel and Lake Chad have been facing armed conflicts and violence for several years.

Some 3.8 million are internally displaced across both regions and 270,000 have fled to neighboring countries as refugees, according to UNHCR.