A devastating drought across the Horn of Africa has triggered mass livestock deaths and displaced over 3 million people in Somalia alone, with nearly 6 million requiring urgent humanitarian aid. The crisis has hit rural communities particularly hard, where livestock accounts for 45% of Somalia's GDP. Children seeking help in displacement camps are showing visible signs of malnutrition and wasting, according to Islamic Relief.

This marks the region's second catastrophic drought in three years, following a 2020-2023 drought that killed nearly 10 million livestock across Kenya, Ethiopia, and Somalia. Islamic Relief warns that climate change is driving increasingly frequent extreme weather events in the region, despite these countries producing only 0.1% of global carbon emissions. The organization's recent report highlights the urgent need for action as the situation threatens to escalate into famine.

The current drought has destroyed crops and left millions facing food insecurity across East Africa. In Kenya alone, over 2 million people are experiencing hunger, with livestock communities seeing animals become emaciated. Islamic Relief's Country Director in Somalia, Aliow Mohamed, warns that "the situation is desperate, but we fear the worst is yet to come," as displaced populations overwhelm already strained aid resources.