Nairobi - Oxfam warned Tuesday that Somalia was close to catastrophe as civilians continued to flee fighting in the lawless capital Mogadishu. More than 200 people have died and over 60,000 people have fled Mogadishu during weeks of heavy clashes between Islamist insurgents and government forces.
"War, drought and malnutrition are thrusting Somalia towards even greater catastrophe," Hassan Noor, Oxfam's Humanitarian Coordinator for Somalia, said in a statement.
Fierce fighting has engulfed Mogadishu since early May as Islamist insurgent groups al-Shabaab and Hizbul Islam push to topple the government of President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed.
Indiscriminate mortar and automatic weapon fire have left a major civilian death toll.
The city has seen an exodus of civilians, with most of them joining hundreds of thousands of other displaced people in and around Afgooye, around 30 kilometres from Mogadishu.
Noor said that the living conditions amongst the displaced were some of the worst he had ever seen.
"I couldn't see a single shelter fit for human beings, and thousands of people have nothing to sleep under or protect them from the searing heat and heavy rains," he said. "I saw sick children lying on the floor with diarrhoea and disease."
Oxfam said it was providing mosquito nets and shelter to families and had extended its water and sanitation system in Afgooye. It is also planning to provide specialist care and food to almost 10,000 malnourished children and mothers in Mogadishu.
There are fears the conflict will only worsen as the insurgents struggle to oust Sheikh Sharif, who came to power earlier this year as part of a UN-backed peace process.
Sheikh Sharif has attempted conciliation but insurgents claim he is too close to the West and refuse to stop fighting until an African Union peacekeeping force of 4,300 soldiers from Burundi and Uganda leave.
The government controls only sections of Mogadishu, while the insurgents hold sway across much of southern and central Somalia.
The insurgency, which began after Ethiopian forces invaded in late 2006, has claimed the lives of over 17,000 people, mainly civilians. Ethiopia pulled out in January this year.
Somalia has been embroiled in chaos since the 1991 ouster of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre and is widely regarded as a failed state.
The conflict, coupled with a prolonged drought, has left over 3 million Somalis dependent on food aid.
