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Al-Shabaab's ban on international relief agencies in areas under its control intensifies the humanitarian crisis in Somalia and endangers the lives of thousands of famine victims, officials and relief workers say.

On October 8th, al-Shabaab banned the UK-based non-profit Islamic Relief from working in areas under its control, accusing the agency of working secretly with relief agencies that the group had already expelled. Islamic Relief has been working in Somalia since 2006.

"Islamic Relief has repeatedly failed, despite the persistent warnings, to comply with the operational guidelines set out by OSAFA [al-Shabaab's Office for Supervising the Affairs of Foreign Agencies]," al-Shabaab posted on Twitter. "Islamic Relief was also found to be covertly extending the operations of banned organisations, particularly WFP [the World Food Programme], in areas under HSM [Harakat al-Shabaab al-Mujahideen]."

Islamic Relief denied the accusations. "None of our programmes in Somalia is funded by the World Food Programme," Iftikhar Shaheen, the group's regional director for east Africa, said in a statement. "If this decision is confirmed, it could put many lives at risk, jeopardising our work providing food, water, sanitation, health care and support for income generation to 1.3 million people in Somalia."

The ban on Islamic Relief is the latest in a series of bans on international relief agencies. In March, al-Shabaab banned Save the Children, and in January, the group ordered the Red Cross to stop its operations. In November 2011, the group banned 16 international agencies from working in the areas it controls, including the World Health Organisation and major UN agencies.

In 2010, al-Shabaab also banned the World Food Programme, the UN Development Programme, the UN Department of Safety and Security, Mercy International, Oxfam International, Italian Development Co-operation, Muslim Aid and Care International.

The Somali government has condemned al-Shabaab's actions. "Al-Shabaab's decision to expel humanitarian agencies from the areas it controls puts hundreds of thousands of people in danger, particularly women and children," said Abdullahi Jimale, head of the National Agency for Disaster Management.

"This al-Shabaab-imposed ban on relief agencies worsens the humanitarian crisis and makes peoples' lives even more difficult," he told Sabahi. "We call on al-Shabaab to refrain from politicising humanitarian aid, which aims at saving the lives of thousands of needy people."

Jimale called on al-Shabaab to allow local and international humanitarian agencies wanting to help the Somali people to work in all areas to save those affected. He requested that relief agencies provide urgent aid in the newly liberated areas such as Kismayo, Marka and Wanlaweyn, as well as in parts of Beledweyne that have been affected by recent floods.

Expulsion of Islamic relief organisations starves victims of drought

Abdifatah Mohamed, director of operations for Badbaado, a local non-governmental relief and development organisation, said al-Shabaab makes the humanitarian situation in Somalia worse because of its ban on international relief agencies.

"Al-Shabaab is responsible for the deteriorating humanitarian crisis in Somalia because it obstructs the passage of aid to affected areas," Mohamed told Sabahi.

Mohamed said al-Shabaab's expulsion of relief agencies is intended to starve the population, especially victims of drought. "In the past, al-Shabaab banned non-Islamic organisations from working because it claimed that these organisations would practice suspicious activities other than humanitarian work. These tricks, however, no longer work after the group expelled Islamic Relief," he said.

"It has become clear that al-Shabaab shows no mercy for the victims of drought, as it has prevented food and medicine from reaching them and has provoked relief agencies that come to Somalia to help stricken Somalis," Mohamed said.

"In addition to all that, al-Shabaab imposes a brutal embargo on citizens living in the areas it controls to the extent that it prevents those in need from heading towards the government-controlled relief camps," he said. "This is proof that al-Shabaab is inhumane and lacks a human conscience when dealing with victims of drought."

Warnings of a recurring food shortage

Ahmed Sheikh Muse, who works for Sardo, a local relief organisation, said the humanitarian situation in Somalia will deteriorate after the expulsion of international aid agencies.

"Last season's harvest was low, which resulted in a weak crop and high food prices. This forces more and more people to rely on aid, but al-Shabaab's ban on aid agencies in areas it controls makes things even worse," he told Sabahi.

According to a new study by Oxfam International, food and water shortages in parts of Somalia have reached critical levels, accompanied by a frightening rise in malnutrition, particularly in Gedo, Bakool and Lower Jubba. Nonetheless, Oxfam says a return to famine is unlikely.

"A perfect storm of last season's poor rains, crop failure, death of livestock and insecurity mean people who were only just coping last year are now heavily reliant on aid," said Senait Gebregziabher, Oxfam Country Director for Somalia.

Oxfam conducted an opinion poll of 1,800 families in 40 areas in central and southern Somalia in July and August to find out the impact of the drought that hit Somalia last year and resulted in a famine that took the lives of thousands of people. Oxfam found that 72% of participants worry that there will not be enough food for the next four months while 42% said that they have had to skip meals.