Nigeria: UN Humanitarian Coordinator Outraged At Attack Against Major Humanitarian Facility

United Nations humanitarian coordinator in Nigeria Edward Kallon announced Monday that terrorists from Boko Haram / ISWAP had attacked his main humanitarian accommodation in Ngala, in northeastern Borno state.

“I am outraged by the extremely violent attack on this key humanitarian facility where five United Nations personnel were residing at the time of the incident,” said Kallon in a statement sent to The Legend.

He said that on the evening of Saturday, January 18, the Ngala humanitarian center was the direct target of a complex assault by agents of heavily armed non-state armed groups.

Kallon explained that an entire section of the facility was burned down as well as one of the few vehicles on which United Nations agencies rely to travel and provide assistance.

He revealed that the protective security measures deployed at the humanitarian center prevented any harm to the staff of the establishment.

“I am shocked by the violence and intensity of this attack, which is the last of too many incidents directly targeting humanitarian actors and the assistance we provide,” said the Humanitarian Coordinator.

“I am relieved that all staff are now safe. Aid workers, facilities and humanitarian goods cannot be targeted and must be protected and respected at all times.

“Such incidents have a disastrous effect on the lives of the most vulnerable people who depend on our help to survive. Many of them had already fled the violence in their region of origin and hoped to find security and assistance in Ngala.

“It also undermines the ability of aid workers to stay and provide assistance to those most in need in remote areas of Borno State.

“I call on all parties to the conflict to respect the principles of humanity, neutrality, independence and impartiality that guide the assistance provided by the humanitarian community in the states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe.”

Aid workers are helping more than 55,000 people in the town of Ngala, near the border with Cameroon. In 2019, more than 10,000 people arrived in Ngala, looking for basic and security services.

The United Nations and partner NGOs in Nigeria are working to provide life-saving assistance to more than seven million people in the crisis-affected states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe, and are increasingly the targets of attack.

Twelve aid workers lost their lives in 2019, double the previous year.

Two aid workers remain in captivity with non-state armed groups – ACF staff member Grace Taku was abducted near Damasak in July 2019 and Alice Loksha, a nurse and mother, kidnapped in an attack on Rann in March 2018.

The United Nations and its humanitarian partners have called for their immediate and safe release.