BY Claire Mom
Save the Children International (SCI), the charity organisation, says over 136,000 people are trapped in Timbuktu, northern Mali, owing to armed groups preventing the entry of food, medicines and other essential supplies.
In a statement on Monday, SCI said nearly 74,000 children are among those cut off from aids by the armed groups.
The United Nations (UN) estimates that at least 33,000 people have been displaced around Timbuktu since the crisis began in August.
SCI said it has had to reduce its number of staff in response to the worsening security situation while working to maintain services as the siege deepens.
The organisation cited an episode in September where 49 civilians were killed on a boat while trying to escape the besieged city.
“With official aid routes completely cut off, supplies are dwindling and the agency fears the remaining services in the city may need to end soon if a resolution of the crisis isn’t found,” the statement reads.
“The blockade has already caused food prices to increase almost tenfold, making it even more difficult for families to access the basics.”
The charity organisation said it has heard of reports of children being separated from their families, recruited by armed groups, and being killed or maimed by improvised explosive devices.
Siaka Outtara, SCI’s country director for Mali, said the situation is unprecedented, adding that thousands of children have been denied access to healthcare as a result of the surging violence.
“The situation in Timbuktu is unlike anything we’ve seen in the past years. While children in the north of Mali sadly regularly experience displacement and violent attacks – many several times a year – it’s rare for them to be fully blockaded in a town, trapped with dwindling supplies,” Outtara was quoted to have said in the statement.
“Thousands of children have passed months now without any access to health services, and the risk of illness increases with each passing day. Children in Timbuktu are distressed, scared, and dream of a life where they can stay in their villages and play. With every day the blockade continues, children are getting hungrier, more stressed, and more fearful.
“These children want nothing more than to live in peace, play with their friends and go to school, and to share a balanced meal with their families. The ongoing blockade is preventing them from doing all of these. We call on all actors to end the blockade, and to ensure that civilians can move safely in and out of the city, and essential aid supplies can reach families and children in need.”
SCI said it is responding to the situation in Timbuktu through cash transfers against malnutrition, shock response, and cash for work activities – long-standing programmes which were established before the blockade – but added that it has become increasingly difficult to reach certain areas because of the blockade.
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