The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees announced: “The drought and refugee crisis in Somalia represents the world's most serious humanitarian emergency (UNHCR, 2011). Although estimates vary, approximately 800,000 people have left Somalia in search of asylum. Most now reside in refugee camps bordering Kenya and Ethiopia. Many walk for days with little food to seek safety and assistance in refugee camps only to find conditions that are no better. Host nations and humanitarian organizations cannot support the vast number of refugees who have already crossed the border, and thousands more are arriving every day. Maintaining the current course of action is not the answer. In addition to calling for greater international assistance and humanitarian aid, it is crucial that more permanent solutions are pursued. There are many factors that have contributed to this situation. The region that is now considered Somalia has gone through many conflicts throughout history. In the 1960s it gained independence and ratified a constitution, but in 1969 the elected leader was assassinated. A bloodless military coup ensued in which the nation's army assumed power. The army commander, Major General Mohamed Siad Barre, became president and established a military government. In the 1990s the economy entered into difficulty. Inflation has caused the prices of goods to skyrocket while the value of the currency has collapsed. It took piles of cash to make the simplest transactions. The country grew restless under military rule and in 1991 opposing clans ousted President Barre, but then failed to agree on a successor. Disorder and chaos ensued, with clans and warlords vying for power in local regions. The fighting hampered agriculture and soon caused food shortages. When the warlords... half of the document... taken from http://ijrl.oxfordjournals.org/content/9/3/365.abstractSchulte, Bettina, spokesperson for Dadaab, United Nations Refugee Agency, UNHCR, (13 July 2011), general format, retrieved from http://globalspin.blogs.time.com/2011/07/13/worlds-greatest-ongoing-humanitarian-disaster-reaches-a-crisis-point/Poole , Walter S., The Effort to Save Somalia August 1992 – March 1994 p.20 (August 2005) General format. Retrieved from http://www.dtic.mil/doctrine/doctrine/history/somalia.pdfU.S. Africa Command, CJTF-HOA Fact Sheet, (2011) General Format. Retrieved from http://www.hoa.africom.mil/pdfFiles/Fact%20Sheet.pdfWestern, Jon, “Sources of Humanitarian Intervention: Beliefs, Information, and Support in U.S. Decisions on Somalia and Bosnia,” International Security, Vol . . 27, no. 1 (July/August 1999) General format. Retrieved from http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/western1.htm