Western-Led War Forces More Malians to Flee

The western-led war in Mali has forced thousands of Malians to seek shelter in neighboring countries, new reports by the UN said.

According to reports by the United Nations, over 4,000 Malian refugees have arrived in Mauritania alone since January 11, when France launched a war on Mali under the pretext of halting the advance of fighters in the country.

Along with Mauritania, Burkina Faso and Niger are also providing the displaced Malians with shelter.

Earlier this week, Adrian Edwards, a spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), told a news briefing in Geneva that new arrivals from Mali continue to “tell us they left their homes because of airstrikes and fighting.”

Edwards added that the refugees also speak of rising shortages of food and fuel “with traditional markets unable to operate.”

The United Nations last Friday warned that the western-led war in Mali will leave massive wave of displacements in the West African state.

“We believe that in the near future there could be up to 300,000 people additionally displaced inside Mali, and over 400,000 additionally displaced in the neighboring countries,” the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) spokeswoman Melissa Fleming told reporters at the time.

The figures do not include the existing 229,000 people already displaced inside the country and 147,000 refugees who have fled to neighboring nations, she said in Geneva.

The spokeswoman also noted that many have been unable to leave the violence-hit country due to the high costs.

The wave of displacements came after France aircraft started airstrikes in the country on January 11, with thousands of Malians fleeing for Mauritania, Burkina Faso and Niger.