Somalia: UN humanitarian chief calls for protection of civilians

John Holmes, the UN's top humanitarian official, has called on all parties in the Somali conflict to protect civilians amid an increasing trend of indiscriminate and disproportionate use of force against the general population in contravention of international humanitarian law. “Combatants appear to have little regard for the safety of civilians in Mogadishu, where residents have been traumatised by years of violence,” he said in a statement issued on 24 April.