Egypt sends food, medical aid to drought-hit Somalia

The Egyptian Army has transported a cargo-plane filled with food and medical aid to Somalia in an effort to support the drought-stricken country from starvation.

President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi directed the delivery of aid which was facilitated by the army, state news agency MENA reported.

The amount of food and medical aid sent to the Somalia has not been disclosed.

The spokesperson of the Egyptian Armed Forces, Colonel Tamer Mahmoud El-Refaay posted on his Facebook page a video of the food and medical aid loaded onto a C-130 military cargo plane.

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The drought in Somalia has decimated harvests and livestock in the war-torn country, posing the threat of renewed famine six years after a similar crisis in which 260,000 people died in 2011.

Around 6.2 million Somalis, around half the population, need aid after the drought withered crops, killed livestock and dried up waterholes in East Africa.

Authorities say the cities of Baidoa and Kismayu have been the hardest hit, where more than 700,000 drought victims come from.

According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), Thousands are also fleeing to neighboring Ethiopia, where drought is also causing immense hardship, with more than 100,000 people displaced since the start of the year.