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UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

BURUNDI: Displaced civilians return to their homes

NAIROBI, 4 July 2003 (IRIN) - An estimated 44,000 internally displaced people have returned to their homes in Kayanza Province, northern Burundi, as fighting between government forces and rebels has subsided, an official of the UN World Food Programme (WFP) told IRIN on Friday.

"They found all their homesteads ransacked and farms looted," Karine Strebelle, the WFP reports and information officer, said.

She added that WFP was monitoring the effects of the "massive" population displacement and the ability of the displaced to sustain themselves.

"WFP will conduct another emergency assessment on the 7 and 8 July to assess the impact of the confrontations and to determine further food assistance needed," she said.

She said approximately 8,848 households, with an average of five people per household, fled fighting between government and Conseil national pour la defense de la democratie-Force pour la defense de la democratie rebels in Muhanga and Gahombo communes in Kayanza on 19 and 21 June.

The displaced sought refuge at Rukeco and Mivo sites, respectively in Busiga and Ngozi communes in Ngozi Province.

An evaluation conducted by WFP on 23 June found that the displaced had left their homes without food reserves. Strebelle said WFP immediately delivered 174.88 mt of food to 41,715 displaced (8,478 households) as a seven-day emergency ration.

She added that the agency assisted only 8,478 households because some had left the sites before the distribution dates after they were informed that their homes were safe.

Army and local authority officials told IRIN on 24 June that an unknown number of rebels were killed in the fighting, which led to the displacement of hundreds of thousands of civilians.

The fighting was intense mainly at Butaganzwa and Matongo communes, the commander of the Third Military Region, Brig-Gen Sylvestre Nimubona, said. Fighting also went on in Mufunya, Nyarurama and Buramiro in Butaganzwa areas, he said.

Theme(s): (IRIN) Refugees/IDPs

[ENDS]

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