Sudanese refugees walk 20km for aid in eastern Chad

Dozens of Sudanese refugees have walked from Marra refugee camp in eastern Chad to the town of Amliouna to demand humanitarian assistance, as heavy rain and strong winds have also damaged shelters at Mile refugee camp near the town of Guéréda in eastern Chad.

The refugees who left Mile refugee camp on foot say they arrived five to eight months ago but have received neither food nor cash assistance for about four months.

One refugee tells Radio Dabanga they are now on their way to the National Commission for Refugee Reception and Registration to lodge their complaint and call for solutions.

The refugees have travelled about 20 kilometres in heavy rain and strong winds that hit the area on Monday evening as they made their way to Amliouna.

The move follows a similar action by refugees from Kaga refugee camp in eastern Chad last year, when they walked 55 kilometres to Farchana to demand better conditions. The refugees are calling on the authorities concerned to ensure that food or cash assistance is delivered regularly.

Meanwhile, heavy rain accompanied by strong winds hit Mile refugee camp in eastern Chad on Monday afternoon, damaging a number of refugees’ shelters and injuring some people.

Refugee Ishaq Adam tells Radio Dabanga the storm destroyed a large number of tents and swept away everything inside them. Some refugees were injured, he says.

Adam says the storm was the second to hit the camp during August, leaving large numbers of refugees, including children and elderly people, without shelter.

He appeals to humanitarian organisations to urgently provide assistance, including food, drinking water, medicines, and medical supplies, as well as shelter materials, tents, and supplies to repair damaged homes.

Note: This article has been translated from Arabic with the assistance of artificial intelligence tools, and subsequently reviewed and adapted by a human editor before publication.