Some 400 hundred families, farmers and herders, have fled four settlements in Bakol region in the past two weeks heading to Tiyeglow town.
Most of them are women and children from Elgaras, Sigle, Biyooley and Dolan-dole settlements, where the combined forces of the Somali federal government and AMISOM have intensified their offensive against Al-Shabaab militants.
Dowlay Ibrahim, a 55-year old mother among 20 families from the small farming village of Sigle, 45km south of Tiyeglow, said they were forced to run for their lives as fierce fighting continued around them for two days.
The town was caught in the crossfire as locals prepared for the harvesting season in mid-August.
“We have fled our homes leaving behind all our animals and crops that were ready for harvesting. We were displaced by the intensified offensives,” said Dowlay.
Amino Abdullahi Idris, a mother of nine, fled with her children from Dalan-doolle, another area at the centre of the clashes. She owned two of the biggest shops in the area but is now living in an open field as an IDP in Tiyeglow.
“We live in the open in squalor but luckily we have safety, which is the most important thing,” said Amino.
The local district administration has no resources to assist the displaced.
Confirming the grim situation to Radio Ergo, head of social services at Tiyeglow district administration Mohamud Mohamed Yussuf said they were not able to feed or resettle the families. Some of them were lucky to have relatives who gave them shelter, but most sleeping in the open fields.
