The UN refugee agency, the UNHCR, says the unrest in Ivory Coast has caused at least six thousand people to lose their homes. The UNHCR says it’s hard pressed to find safe havens for them.
Agency spokeswoman Delphine Marie says at least fifty people a day are now coming to the agency for help. She says many people in shantytowns around the main city, Abidjan, have had their homes destroyed or burned by security forces.
The UNHCR says “the situation in Ivory Coast remains volatile and unpredictable.” It says the destruction of the “so-called ‘precarious’ districts, particularly around government buildings and military installations” is causing the displacement of Ivorian nationals and immigrants.
The UNHCR and other aid agencies have met with government officials hoping to “look at possible solutions to this humanitarian crisis.” Delphine Marie spoke with English to Africa reporter Joe De Capua. Click above links to hear interview with UNCHR official.