Climate change intensifies drought crisis in Horn of Africa

The drought in the Horn of Africa, which has affected 50 million people directly and another 100 million in the wider area, would not have happened without the human-made impact of the climate crisis, according to a study by the World Weather Attribution group of scientists. The study found that the recent rainfall conditions would not have led to drought in a world that was 1.2C cooler, and that climate change had made droughts such as the current one about 100 more times likely to occur. At least 4.35 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance, and at least 180,000 refugees have fled Somalia and South Sudan for Kenya and Ethiopia, which have also been affected by the drought.