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Famine may have killed 2,000 people in northeastern Nigeria: Report

A woman feeds her baby suffering from severe malnutrition in the ICU ward at In-Patient Therapeutic Feeding Center in Gwangwe district of Maiduguri, Borno state, northeastern Nigeria, September 17, 2016. (Photo by AFP)

More than 2,000 people may have died of famine this year across the militancy-riddled areas of northeastern Nigeria, a report says.

The US-based Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) said in a report on Tuesday that the deaths occurred in the town of Bama in Borno state.

The risk of famine in parts of northeastern Nigeria that are "inaccessible" by aid agencies due to the presence of Boko Haram Takfiri terrorists will remain high, the report said.

"The risk of famine in inaccessible areas of Borno state will remain high over the coming year," the report said, adding, "In a worst-case scenario, where conflict cuts off areas that are currently accessible and dependent on assistance, the likelihood of famine in these areas would be high."

About 4.7 million people are in need of emergency food aid in the states of Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe.

The United Nations Children's Fund, UNICEF, said in September that famine threatens some 400,000 children in the three states. The UN agency warned that 75,000 of the kids could die of hunger within months.

The photo taken on June 30, 2016, shows a woman carrying her daughter to one of UNICEF’s nutrition clinics on the outskirts of Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state, northeastern Nigeria. (Photo by AFP)

Despite the government's fight against Boko Haram, the security situation remains volatile in Borno, specifically its capital, Maiduguri.

Boko Haram started its campaign of militancy in 2009 with the aim of toppling the central government in Nigeria. More than 20,000 people have so far been killed and over 2.7 million others have been forced from homes.

Boko Haram has pledged allegiance to the Daesh Takfiri terrorists operating mainly in Syria and Iraq.


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