Cote D’Ivoire
IDPs Begin to Return Home
Displaced populations in the country’s western Olodio locality and other areas are gradually returning to their villages despite lingering insecurity. Some 3,000 people fled their homes following armed attacks on Dahioké, Grabo and Irato areas in January. Humanitarian actors are assessing the possibility of food distributions in communities of return.
Burkina Faso
400 Flee Mali Clashes
Recent clashes between a self-defence group and separatist National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) fighters in northern Mali have driven more than 400 people to neighbouring Burkina Faso. The majority of the displaced originate from Intillit, Tessit and Boulkessi areas of northern Mali that have suffered armed attacks. The refugees have settled in Mentao and Goudébou camps. Burkina Faso hosts some 33,000 Malian refugees.
Niger
15-day State Of Emergency Imposed On Diffa
The Nigerien government has imposed a two-week state of emergency in Diffa in the wake of attacks by Boko Haram. The emergency status allows troops to conduct house searches without a warrant and to impose curfews. According to local authorities the attacks that erupted on 6 February have forced thousands of people to flee to other towns. However, the exact number of the displaced is still unknown.
Nigeria2 Towns Hit By Boko Haram Twenty-one people were killed when Boko Haram raided two villages in Borno State on 12 February. The insurgents also attacked a military and a police post in Gombe, the capital of Gombe State on 14 February, prompting authorities to impose a brief curfew. The militants had reportedly distributed leaflets calling on residents to boycott the upcoming general elections. The following day, a separate attack occurred in Damaturu, the Yobe State capital, where a female suicide bomber killed seven people and injured 32 others.
Regional / Ebola Virus Disease (evd)
22,859 Cases And 9,162 Deaths / Cases Rise For The Second Week
As of 8 February, there were 22,859 confirmed, probable and suspected EVD cases in the three high transmission countries of Guinea, Sierra Leone, and Liberia. Confirmed Ebola cases rose for the second straight week, with 144 new cases reported in the week leading up to 8 February, 20 cases more than the week before. Guinea has reported the largest increase in caseload, with 65 more cases in the week of 8 February.
Sahel
Usd$1.96 Billion Regional Appeal Launched
The Sahel humanitarian appeal for 2015 was launched on 16 February in Dakar. The USD$1.96 billion appeal is to assist millions of people affected by food insecurity, conflict and other crises in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Gambia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria and Senegal. Over 20 million people in the region are facing food shortages and 2.8 million have been displaced from their homes by violence.
