EMERGENCY RELIEF COORDINATOR DEMANDS PROTECTION FOR CIVILIANS, AID WORKERS IN SOMALIA
| Press Release AFR/720 IHA/804 |
EMERGENCY RELIEF COORDINATOR DEMANDS PROTECTION FOR CIVILIANS, AID WORKERS IN SOMALIA
(Reissued as received.)
NEW YORK, 7 October (Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs)-- Jan Egeland, the UN Emergency Relief Coordinator, expressed his sorrow today following the killing of Annalena Tonelli, an Italian aid worker in Somalia. Ms. Tonelli, who spent over 30 years working with Somalis, was shot and killed by an unknown gunman outside a hospital that she founded in Borama in north-western Somalia, on Sunday evening. He extends his sincere condolences to Ms. Tonelli’s family and colleagues. “I was deeply shocked and outraged by yet another fatal attack on a humanitarian worker in Somalia. Her death underscores the dangerous circumstances in which aid workers bring assistance to people in need, and the bravery they exhibit in so doing”, Mr. Egeland said.
The Emergency Relief Coordinator called on all Somali faction leaders to ensure the safety of civilians and humanitarian workers.
The security situation remains extremely difficult in Somalia, preventing aid agencies from accessing many vulnerable groups who continue to suffer the effects of conflict and insecurity. Inter-factional fighting in Somalia has claimed countless civilian casualties and numerous international and national aid workers over the past years. “Ms. Tonelli dedicated her life to helping those in need, working under very difficult conditions, in an area of the world often forgotten by others”, Mr. Egeland added.
Ms. Tonelli, recipient of the United Nations 2003 Nansen Refugee Award for her work with refugees in Kenya and Somalia, ran a 200-bed hospital in the north-western Somali region known as “Somaliland”. She also set up clinics to fight tuberculosis and create awareness about HIV/AIDS and the harmful effects of female genital mutilation. By raising her own money and running her own programmes, she was able to effectively address many of the problems facing ordinary Somalis. Ms. Tonelli was 60 years old.