Forgotten Crises: The Top Ten Most Underreported Humanitarian Stories of 2007 : Indybay

It was almost a year ago to the day when the US-backed Ethiopian invasion of Somalia began. One year later, the conflict is widely considered Africa’s worst humanitarian crisis. The fighting has caused an unknown number of civilian casualties and the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people from the capital. An estimated 60 percent of Mogadishu residents have fled their homes.

But most people in the United States are not aware of what is happening in Somalia. The conflict rarely gets any airtime on any of the corporate networks" nightly newscasts and is given little column space in the major newspapers.

Somalia is one of the top ten most underreported humanitarian stories of 2007, according to a list compiled by the international medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders, also known as Medecins Sans Frontieres. The list highlights the plight of people in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka, Chechnya and elsewhere. As we approach the end of 2007 we take a look back at these forgotten crises. Nicolas de Torrente, executive director of Doctors Without Borders-USA, joins us in the firehouse studio.

Nicolas de Torrente, executive director of Doctors Without Borders-USA.

Forgotten Crises: The Top Ten Most Underreported Humanitarian Stories of 2007

Related Links

Donate

Get Involved

Publish