Floods devastate southern Somalia as violence persists in capital

The African Union is seeking U.N. approval for a naval and air blockade of Somalia, as well as more troops and aid to fend off piracy and terrorism in the struggling Horn of Africa nation.

The UN Security Council met for several hours behind closed doors yesterday to consider the request, but said afterward that though it considers the AU's appeal for a blockade to be «legitimate», the council's members would need to study it further.

Meanwhile in the south of the country, above-average rains have flooded riverside areas and swamped farmland. But the devastation is not over.

“For the next rainy season the forecasts are not good, so rains will not be sufficient to cover the water requirement for crops,” says Ottavio Sardu, an agronomist working for the International Committee of the Red Cross in Somalia.

“We planned a big intervention in the south in order to cover part of the needs,” Sardu told Vatican Radio. He says that the ICRC has rehabilitated river banks, and has compensated for the lost of harvest by distributing seeds to farmers.

Listen to Ottavio Sardu’s full interview with Kelsea Brennan-Wessels: