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UN refugee agency reports 320,000 displaced people in Mali

15 June 2012 02:58 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. The United Nations said here Thursday that some 320,000 people have been displaced in Mali due to the recent political instability in the West African country, APA reports quoting Xinhua.

"The United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) says the political instability in Mali has displaced close to 320,000 people," UN spokesman Martin Nesirky said at a daily news briefing.

"More than 170,000 Malians have found refuge in Burkina Faso, Mauritania and Niger," he said. "The remainder are displaced inside Mali."

The UN refugee agency along with the World Food Program recently launched a regional emergency operation to provide life- saving support, the spokesman said, adding that the refugee agency has revised its funding appeal for Mali and now says it needs 153 million U.S. dollars for its emergency response operations.

The military junta in Mali, also called CNRDRE, seized power on March 22, triggering a crisis in which separatist Tuareg rebels carved up the West African country’s north and declared an independent Azawad state.