3,200 Ghanaian refugees fleeing ethnic strife in country’s north cross border into Togo

3,200 flee ethnic strife in Ghana, cross into Togo

DAKAR, Senegal — A U.N. official says several thousand Ghanaians fleeing ethnic strife have crossed into Togo in recent days.

Francis Kpatinde, regional spokesman for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, says the Togolese government is supplying refugees with tents, food and medicine and has started to vaccinate children. The U.N. Refugee agency is also on the ground in northern Togo’s Tangjouare prefecture, awaiting truckloads of tents, mosquito nets and food.

Kpatinde said Wednesday that in roughly the last 10 days, more than 3,200 refugees from Kombatiek and Nadongou villages had crossed the border. He said the local population was struggling to cope with the influx.

While Ghana is relatively stable, occasionally refugees cross into Togo from the north to flee ethnic fighting and land disputes.