Donncha O’Callaghan ‘shaken to the core’ by scenes in Somalia

Unicef Ireland Ambassador Donncha O’Callaghan meets nine-month-old Haris, whois receiving treatment for malnutrition, at a Unicef-supported Stabilisation Centre in Dollow, Somalia (Unicef/PA)

A former Ireland rugby international star has said he was “shaken to the core” by scenes he witnessed in Somalia, as devastating drought puts the country on the brink of the world’s first famine in five years.

Donncha O’Callaghan, the Unicef ambassador, told how streams of desperate people are walking up to 100km to reach aid camps, but some mothers have been found sitting by the gravesides of children who did not make it.