afrol News, 13 March - Ethiopian victims of a grenade attack in Somalia's port town of Bossasso last month have been assisted by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) to return home on Wednesday.

Accompanied by IOM staff from Hargeisa, Somalia, the 33 victims and their relatives were flown home to Dire Dawa in eastern Ethiopia. Somalian authorities have provided critical security and logistical support, including transport to take the victims from the hospital to the airport.

The 6 February grenade attack killed 22 people and wounded 74 others. Most of the victims were Ethiopian migrants wanting to embark on the perilous sea journey across the Gulf of Aden to Yemen using smuggling networks.

Of the 33 returnees, 21 people who have been suffering from bone fractures or limb amputations, will be admitted in Dire Dawa general hospital. Since the attack, the victims have been in a hospital in Bossasso, where the local community showered them with sympathy.

But due to limited facilities at the hospital has not helped victims with serious injuries and wounds to heal.

IOM officials are ready to provide psycho-social assistance to the blast victims once their medical condition has been stabilised, rehabilitate and reintegrate them into their home communities.

The returnees, all men except for one woman, hailed from south-western and northern part of Ethiopia. Due to remoteness of their villages and poor communication network, it was difficult to trace the families and exact home destinations of most victims.

"We have yet to trace the families of all the bomb victims," said Bill Lorenz, IOM's Operations Officer for the region.

"Some of the migrants are still traumatized by what has happened to them and are nervous about coming home. We're hoping that being back in Ethiopia will help lessen their trauma and that will help us to link them to their families."

Aid agencies, including UNHCR and IOM, have been providing assistance and information to migrants travelling to Bossasso in Somalia's Puntland. The region has over the years become a major human smuggling hotspot for Somalis and Ethiopians seeking either protection or better work opportunities in the Gulf and beyond.

IOM is poised to help Puntland authorities to develop migration policies and to train immigration officers to enhance the ability of the authorities to respond to migration challenges.

The organisation has announced to have begun a new counter-smuggling and counter-trafficking information campaign targeting potential migrants in rural Ethiopia.

By staff writer

© afrol News

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