At least thirty people are reported to have died of famine in the past ten days in western Somalia.

The deaths, in the drought-hit Bulo Hawo district of the Gedo region near the Ethiopian border, were announced by the district commissioner Nur Matan Abdi.

He said wells there were dry and livestock dying but fighting between rival militia groups was preventing aid reaching the area.

Clan leaders and elders have been touring towns in Gedo since Monday in an effort to restore security.

A major delivery of food aid to the neighbouring region of Bako was halted last week after a series of attacks on it.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service