(MENAFN- Qatar News Agency) United Nations agencies are sounding the alarm about the plight of civilians at risk inside the country and are now also warning that the crisis threatens to engulf the region, with thousands of people fleeing the fighting to seek refuge in neighbouring countries.
Since December 2012, violence and instability have displaced more than 700,000 people inside Central African Republic (CAR) and forced over 288,000 to flee to neighbouring Cameroon, Chad, the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Republic of Congo, according to the UN news center. The World Food Programme (WFP) warned that neighbouring countries are struggling to cope with the more than 150,000 new arrivals in urgent need of assistanc
According to WFP, the exodus from CAR into fragile and food-insecure areas has intensified since December 2013, creating new strains on local communitie
Many of the surrounding countries are already hosting large numbers of refugees from various countries and resources are stretche
WFP said it is concerned it cannot meet the needs of these extremely vulnerable people because of insufficient fundin
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported that more than 15,000 people in 18 locations in the north-west and south-west of the country are at present surrounded and being threatened by armed group
"These populations are at very high risk of attack and urgently need better security," UNHCR spokesperson Adrian Edwards told reporters in Genev
"Although violence has hit all communities in CAR, most of the people who are trapped are Muslims under threat from anti-Balaka militiamen." Highlighting reports of recent attacks, Edwards said UNHCR and its partners are responding to these situations through protection-by-presence, humanitarian assistance, advocacy for protection measures and in exceptional cases, through facilitating the movement of these communities to safe site
"But humanitarian efforts alone cannot be sufficient solution to the crisis," he state
"We are appealing again to all armed elements to stop indiscriminate attacks against civilian
We are also calling for the deployment of more international troops as their numbers are far too low considering the size of the country and the scope of the crisis." Last week Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon put forward a six-point initiative for addressing the most urgent priorities and needs in CAR, including more troops and police, increased efforts for the peace process, support for the Government, funding for humanitarian assistance and accountability
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