PLATFORMS

DOLLOW — After two days in a small Somali hospital, Abdiwali Abdi seemed to be groping his way towards some sort of recovery. The two-year-old still weighed just 4.6kg (10lb 2oz) – not much more than a healthy newborn. But he had the energy to moan now, and his mother, …

MOGADISHU — The Somali Disaster Management Agency (SoDMA) distributed food supplies to former disabled Somali military veterans in Martini hospital in Mogadishu on Friday. Speaking to the media, the director of the aid department of the Somali Disaster Management Agency (SoDMA), Mrs. Sahra Ali underlined that the aid handed over …

DOHA — Qatar Red Crescent Society (QRCS) has announced the launch of its annual “Warm Winter” winterisation campaign. Under the theme “Humanity First: We Give Them Warmth”, the new drive is aimed at providing QR13.5m worth of winter projects/aid for the benefit of 261,300 people in 14 countries. Ali bin …

GENEVA —  In an opening speech to the UNHCR’s Executive Committee, U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi appealed to member states to provide protection to people fleeing conflict and persecution, regardless of ethnicity and nationality. The U.N. refugee agency (UNHCR) reports the number of people forcibly displaced by armed …

JOHANNESBURG — The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said it’s concerned by the gruesome killing of two Somali nationals in Klein Bulhoek near Grahamstown this week. The bodies were discovered by a resident inside a tuckshop container. Eastern Cape police have since opened a case of murder and …

MOGADISHU — UAE relief efforts continue to provide support to the Somali people by meeting the needs of more than 2.5 million residents affected by drought. A UAE aid ship carrying over 1,000 tonnes of food and relief items arrived at the port of the capital, Mogadishu, last month in …

DOHA — Qatar Charity (QC) received a QR1mn cheque as a donation from Doha Bank in support of the ‘Pakistan Relief’ and ‘Somalia Hunger Appeal’ campaigns aiming to deliver humanitarian aid to the flood victims of Pakistan and those affected by drought in Somalia. The contribution is part of Doha …

NAIROBI — The UK government has urged the Kenyan Government to open its land border with Kenya to ease response to drought mitigation. The UK ambassador to Kenya Jane Marriot was in Mandera  on a mission to assess the impact of drought situation said the UK will continue to give …

MOGADISHU — The Banadir Regional Administration (BRA) has kicked off distribution of relief food targeting some households at an Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) in Mogadishu’s Kahda District. The IDPs have arrived from Shabelle region and parts of Central Somalia following the severe drought that has caused havoc in many parts …

DOLLOW — Blindness heightens the remaining senses. The thud of a toppling camel is more jarring, the feel of tightening skin more acute, the smell of death thicker after weeks and months and then years without the rain that’s needed to survive. Perhaps, as panic rose with the wind, Mohamed …