YAOUNDE, Cameroon(AA)

Over 3,300 people, including 2,000 children and more than 500 women, have been forced to flee their homes after the recent harrowing assault on a village in Burkina Faso, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said on Tuesday.

At least 138 civilians were killed in the June 5 attack on Solhan village in Burkina Faso’s northeastern Sahel region, near the border with Niger, making it the “deadliest since 2015,” according to UNHCR spokesperson Babar Baloch.

Fearing for their lives, thousands of men, women, and children rushed for refuge in the nearby villages of Sebba and Sampelga, arriving “with few or no belongings.”

“The majority were generously welcomed by local families who are sharing what little they have. The new arrivals urgently need water and sanitation, shelter, essential aid items and medical care,” Baloch said at a press briefing in Geneva.

“Authorities have delivered almost 400 tons of food and thousands of relief items, while UNHCR partners are providing medical care and psychosocial support.”

According to the UN agency, violence in the country has forced more than 1.2 million Burkinabe from their homes since 2019.

“Already this year, some 150,000 people have been internally displaced, with 84% either women, who face a high risk of gender-based violence, or children, half of whom have reportedly been subjected to physical violence and abuse,” the spokesperson said.

He added that violence and displacement have also surged in neighboring Mali and Niger.

“Mali hosts 372,000 IDPs [internally displaced persons], a 7% rise since the start of the year. In total, 237,000 refugees and 300,000 IDPs live in Niger, with a rise of 4,000 refugees and 2,000 IDPs since the start of the year following an increase in attacks,” Baloch said.