Refugees preparing to depart from Kablewa camp which has been officially closed, to the UNHCR refugee camp at Sayam Forage (photo: Ibrahim Abdou / UNHCR).

The camp has been deserted for several days following a series of attacks in the area.

The past week has seen a serious deterioration in the security situation in the area of Kablewa. On the 28th of June, suspected insurgents carried out the first direct attack against the Kablewa IDP camp, managed by UNHCR. Two suicide bombers killed themselves as well as two young IDPs, while 11 others were injured. Just four days later, another insurgent attack took place in the village of Ngalewa, situated close by in the commune of N’Guigmi. 9 men were murdered during the attack while 37 women and youth were kidnapped during the attack. This has reportedly resulted in additional displacements from several villages between N’Guigmi and Ngalewa of up to 7,000 people.

Just two days later, it is reported that a group of civilians were returning to their village in the area close to Abadam, which was declared a ‘no-go zone’ due to Boko Haram attacks. It is reported that the civilians had not received prior authorization and thus were mistaken by the joint military task force as being members of the insurgent group. The military opened fire mistakenly killing 14 civilians.

The IDP camp of Kablewa had a registered population of over 12,000, but an actual estimated population of 16,166 people. The majority of the population are IDPs who were evacuated from the Lake Chad islands in 2015. A small number of refugees were also residing in the camp, however immediately following the suicide attack on the 28th of June, they requested to be relocated to UNHCR’s Sayam Forage refugee camp. On the 5th of June, UNHCR facilitated the voluntary relocation of a convoy of 212 refugees to Sayam Forage camp.

According to Arima, one of the Nigerian refugees relocated to Sayam Forage camp last week, “we want to go to the refugee camp for our security. We didn’t want to move far from the Lake, which is our home, but in the current situation, it’s better for us to join the others in Sayam Forage. At least there we can shelter our children, which is longer possible at Kablewa. Really…we no longer have the choice”. The camp of Kablewa is now completely empty. The IDP population have dispersed, mainly to the area north of the village of Kablewa (approximately 9,000 people), as well as various spontaneous sites along the Route Nationale 1 including Kindjandi (approximately 1,500) and Garin Wanzam (approximately 1,000). However, this is reportedly causing some tensions between the displaced and the host population, who depend on this land for grazing their livestock, as well as agricultural activities during the current rainy season.

The regional authorities have identified a potential new site for the displaced, which is situated around 4km from the old camp. A joint evaluation is currently being carried out to analyse the potential of the site, however concerns have been raised in several sectors, most notably in terms of protection. The site remains in close proximity to the original site, and thus many of the issues and security and protection concerns remain relevant. A final decision regarding a new potential site has not yet been declared, however the results of the joint evaluation will be presented on the 13th of July, at a meeting of the Regional Authorities.

Contact: Louise Donovan, Associate External Relations Officer, donovan@unhcr.org; +227 9218347
Benoit Moreno, External Relations Officer, morenob@unhcr.org, +227 92192473