The UN denounces almost 60 attacks against humanitarian workers in CAR since the beginning of the year

May 26. (EUROPE PRESS) –

The United Nations has verified at least 57 attacks against humanitarian personnel and 17 medical centers since the beginning of the year in the Central African Republic, one of the most dangerous countries in the world for the performance of humanitarian aid for the 3.4 million people (more than 60 percent of the population) who desperately need help to survive.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) denounces, without going any further, an attack that occurred this past Wednesday that claimed the life of a driver of a humanitarian aid team in the north of the country, specifically on the highway between Birao and AmDafok, the latter town hosting 13,000 refugees and displaced persons.

Two of the team members were temporarily held before their release in the same extremely dangerous region, where for example the prominent rebel group the Popular Front for the Renaissance of the Central African Republic (or FPRRC) operates.

Added to this violence against humanitarian workers are the attacks against the country’s medical centers which, according to data from the World Health Organization, have left at least one medical worker dead and ten others injured throughout the 17 recorded assaults. between January and May of this year.

The UN humanitarian coordinator for the country, Mohamed ag Agoya, has strongly condemned these acts of violence that threaten aid workers, doctors, patients, refugees and displaced persons alike, and that on many occasions force NGOs to suspend their activities in the country.

“These acts,” recalls the coordinator, “constitute a flagrant violation of International Humanitarian Law that regulates the protection of civilians and humanitarian workers.”