“According to Camerounian authorities, some 13,000 Nigerian refugees crossed from Adamawa State after insurgents attacked and captured the town of Mubi in late October. The refugees fled to the towns of Guider and Gashiga in the North region of Cameroun and to Bourha, Mogode and Boukoula in the Far North,” United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said in a statement from Geneva.
UNHCR cited local authorities in Cameroun as saying the “vast majority” of these 13,000 Nigerians had returned to Nigeria, saying that their final destination was Yola, the capital city of Adamawa State, about 200 kilometres south of Mubi.
Following the attack on Mubi, it was reported that refugees arrived in Cameroun in more than 300 vehicles – including many personal vehicles, as well as some trucks and rented cars. The Camerounian authorities reported that they facilitated onward transit movements and provided escorts to ensure the safety of those transiting through Camerounian territory.
On the Nigeria side, a UNHCR team confirmed that thousands of Nigerians were now being hosted at Girei (Gombe State) and at the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) camp in Yola, one of the five sites in Adamawa State hosting internally displaced people.
In Yola, UNHCR has interviewed some of the people who transited through Cameroun before re-entering Nigeria. “The vast majority of them are women and children. They told our teams that many families were forced to flee on foot, taking few belongings with them and walking tens of kilometres before finding safety in Cameroun,” the UNHCR statement said.
It added that UNHCR was also examining claims that some of these refugees may have been forced to return to Nigeria. “We are seeking assurances from both Nigeria and Cameroun that the return of these people was done on a voluntary basis,” it said.
Cameroun is hosting thousands of refugees from Nigeria and the Central African Republic. UNHCR urged Cameroun to maintain an open door for refugees.
In other areas in the far North region that border Nigeria’s Borno State, Camerounian authorities continue to report regular attempts by insurgents to carry out incursions into Camerounian territory, frequently launching attacks from their strongholds on the Nigerian side of the border. Before the latest attacks in Mubi, Camerounian authorities had confirmed that more than 43,000 Nigerians had sought refuge in Cameroun, of whom close to 17,000 are living at Minawao refugee camp, which is managed by UNHCR and other humanitarian agencies.
Meanwhile, in Niger, at least 1,000 people have arrived in the Bosso area, in the southern part of the country, following the capture by insurgents last week of the garrison town of Malam Fatori. The Nigerian town is located only a few kilometres from the border with Niger.
The new arrivals in Bosso said Malam Fatori is now almost empty, as most inhabitants have fled without taking any belongings with them. Children show signs of trauma. At this point, it is difficult to know exactly how many people have arrived in the past few days.
The crisis in the North-east of Nigeria has led to the flight of more than 100,000 people to Niger since May 2013. Both Nigerian refugees and citizens of Niger.
According to the agency, around 2,700 refugees have moved into Chad. At the same time, over 650,000 people are displaced within Nigeria’s six north-eastern states.
“The ongoing refugee crisis has seen more than 100,000 people spill over into Niger’s Diffa region since the beginning of 2014, while Cameroon is currently hosting some 44,000 Nigerian refugees. According to authorities, another 2,700 have fled to Chad.
“At the same time, recent violence on the Niger-Nigeria border has prompted at least 1,000 Nigerians to escape over the border into Niger’s Bosso area, particularly following last week’s capture of the garrison town, Malam Fatori, by insurgents,” said the statement.
