Reply #105: Refugees from Libya attacked in Tunisian desert

[pinboy3niner]

Source: The Guardian

Hundreds who fled Gaddafi regime left without shelter as locals ransack and burn down refugee camp


Tom Kington in Rome
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 25 May 2011 20.05 BST

"They came in daylight, well organised, and army did nothing to protect the camp dwellers and may have even provided an escort as the locals burned what they could not steal. Something has to be done now for these migrants stranded in the sand."

More than 1,000 migrants who fled fighting in Libya have been left without shelter in the Tunisian desert after locals burned down and looted a refugee camp on the country's border, witnesses have claimed.

At least five people were wounded when Tunisian soldiers opened fire on migrants fleeing Tuesday's attack on the UN-managed Choucha camp near the main crossing with Libya at Ras Ajdir, said Alganesc Fessaha, an Eritrean doctor who treated the victims.

The attack, which left around 1,500 residents without shelter, reflected growing resentment among locals against the migrants, mainly foreign workers from Eritrea, Somalia and the Ivory Coast.

...


De Pretis said the attack marked a change in the mood of Tunisians, who have hitherto offered hospitality to refugees streaming over the border , even as they struggle to rebuild their own economy after this year's popular uprising.

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http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/may/25/libya-refugees-gaddafi-regime-attacked