13,000 Nigerian refugees in Cameroon – UNHCR official

The United Nations has said the population of Nigerian refugees in a Cameroonian camp tripled in two months, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has said.

In a statement issued by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, also known as the UN Refugee Agency, the organization cited Cameroonian authorities’ claims that about 13,000 Nigerian refugees had now crossed over from the Nigerian border state of Adamawa after Boko Haram insurgents attacked and captured the town of Mubi in late October.

UNHCR warned that “thousands of Nigerians are escaping the deadly threat posed by the terrorist group Boko Haram and fleeing into neighbouring Cameroon”.

The organization said the refugees fled to the Guider and Gashiga towns, northern region of Cameroon, and to Bourha, Mogode and Boukoula in the Far North.

“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 kilometers before finding safety in Cameroon,” the organization added.

Culled from: Cameroon Online