Kenyan camp overwhelmed by Somali refugees

DADAAB, Kenya, June 26 (UPI) -- The United Nations says it is attempting to expand a refugee camp in Kenya being overwhelmed by the never-ending arrival of Somali refugees.

The Christian Science Monitor said Friday as 500 refugees arrive daily at the refugee camp in the town of Dadaab, U.N. officials are struggling to convince the government and local authorities in Kenya to allow the camp to expand.

The camp, currently the largest refugee camp in the world, opened in 1991 and nearly two decades later remains a popular port of call for displaced individuals in the region.

Many of the refugees seeking shelter in the camp are from Somalia as they attempt to flee the ongoing violence in the neighboring African country.

The most recent violence in Somalia has forced more than 159,000 people from the country's capital of Mogadishu, the Christian Science Monitor said.

The current violence is focused on clashes between Somali government forces and members of the Islamist al-Shabab movement.