MOGADISHU, Somalia – Somalia has questioned Kenya’s plans to close the Dadaab and Kakuma refugee camps, which have hosted thousands of refugees from Somalia and South Sudan, in a move that could further pressure relations between the two countries.
Earlier in the week, Kenya, through Home Secretary Secretary Dr. Fred Matiang’i an ultimatum to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees [UNHCR]and demanded that the two camps be closed without negotiations.
Nairobi said the UN body should spend a maximum of 14 days to comply with the directive, something that caught Mogadishu off guard. Kenya did not provide a justification for the impact of the decision, but it has been at odds with Somalia.
“CS Fred Matiangi is giving the UNHCR a 14-day ultimatum to have a roadmap for a specific closure of Dadaab and Kakuma refugee camps. There is no room for further negotiations,” reads the statement issued last week.
But on Friday, outgoing Information Minister Osman Abukar Dubbe said Mogadishu was concerned about Nairobi’s decision and argued that the movement was a strategy to politicize humanitarian issues in violation of international law.
But the vocal minister did not disclose immediate decisions that Somalia will take to save the situation. This is not the first time that Kenya is pushing to close the camps, claiming that they have been used as terrorist breeding cells in the country.
The decision comes at a time when Kenya is in conflict with Somalia across the oil-rich maritime border with Kenya along the Indian Ocean. The case is being heard by the International Court of Justice [ICJ] in The Hague.
AXADLETM
