Contact: In Nairobi, Kenya Patrick Mweki pmweki@imcworldwide.org

+254 733 620 958

In Washington DC, USA Natalia Cieslik ncieslik@imcworldwide.org +1 202 2308804

March 26, 2008, Nairobi, Kenya/Washington DC, USA - With fighting increasing, International Medical Corps (IMC) in Somalia has witnessed a fresh exodus of people fleeing Mogadishu over the last weeks. IMC medical staff close to the capital also reported a sharp increase in patients, the majority suffering from acute watery diarrhea, pneumonia, and intestinal parasites. In February 2008 IMC's staff operating three mobile clinics in the displaced persons camps conducted 28% more consultations than during the previous month. The number of children under five coming for medical help rose by 40%.

International Medical Corps operates three clinics along the so-called 'Afgoye corridor' where more than 250,000 people have found refuge from fighting in Mogadishu. The 30 kilometer stretch of road between the Somali capital and the town of Afgoye has become the fastest growing displacement camp in the world.

The number of patients during the first two months of March rose even sharper - by 63% compared to the same time period in February. Cases of bloody diarrhea and intestinal parasites have more than doubled.

"We clearly see the humanitarian toll of the catastrophic situation in Somalia in our clinics. The long-term displaced people become more susceptible to diseases, and the new arrivals put further pressure on the overstretched aid infrastructure," says Patrick Mweki, International Medical Corps country director in Somalia.

The number of malnourished children is also higher than in previous months. International Medical Corps is providing nutritional support to children with severe malnutrition who can still be treated as outpatients.

Amid the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Somalia, International Medical Corps is asking the international community and all parties to the conflict to urgently focus their attention on the devastating conditions in which Somalis live and agencies operate. In a joint statement with 38 other aid organizations of the Somalia NGO consortium, IMC expresses the urgent need that safe access for humanitarian supplies must be ensured, civilians must be protected, and the environment of impunity must be addressed. The humanitarian crisis will become more and more complex and will continue to deepen in the absence of a political solution to the current crisis.

"The security situation is deteriorating and we feel the impact on ground," says Mweki. "Armed groups are not respecting civilians and aid workers. Our work is becoming more difficult and more dangerous by the day."