Refugees stand outside their tent at the Ifo Extension refugee camp in Dadaab, near the Kenya-Somalia border in Garissa County. Photo Credit: Reuters
Kenya delays closure of Somali refugee camp after several pleas from rights activists
The Kenyan government has decided to delay the closure of a Somali refugee camp in the country after several requests from human rights groups to that effect.
The decision which was announced on Wednesday by the country’s interior minister Joseph Ole Nkaissery is to make way for the repatriation of the refugees.
Kenya considers this essential for the proper closure of the Dadaab refugee complex in the next six months.
The interior minister told a news conference that “The government has accepted the request to extend the deadline for the completion of repatriation of Somali refugees, and this is essential to the closure of the Dadaab refugee complex, by six months”.
Mr. Nkaissery further stated that “the ongoing voluntary repatriation will continue uninterrupted”.
The Dadaab refugee camp is home to more than 300,000 people. But Kenya sees the facility as a security risk as it continues to battle Islamist groups causing havoc in Kenya and neighboring countries.
Source: Africafeeds.com
