UN warning over Sahel region crisis

The heads of three UN agencies are appealing for urgent funds to deal with the growing humanitarian crisis in Africa’s Sahel region.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres says the situation in the 3,400-mile zone that stretches from the Atlantic to the Red Sea and includes Mali, Chad and Sudan “is becoming extremely, extremely dramatic”.

The region has been hit hard by political instability and drought. Mr Guterres told reporters in Geneva on Tuesday that the global focus on Syria has detracted attention from the Sahel crisis and resulted in donations of less than half the £456m (€551m) requested.

Unicef’s executive director Anthony Lake says at least one million children in the region are in “imminent peril”.

The World Health Organisation also joined the appeal.