By Juweria Ali and Tom Gardner
As villagers in Somali region fall ill in unexplained circumstances, some locals fear gas exploration has tainted the local water supply
At first, 23-year-old Khadar Abdi Abdullahi’s eyes began turning yellow. Then the palms of his hands did the same. Soon he was bleeding from his nose, and from his mouth, and his body was swelling all over. Eventually he collapsed with fever.
A deadly sickness is spreading through villages near a Chinese natural gas project in Ethiopia‘s Somali region, according to locals and officials who spoke to the Guardian. Many of Khadar’s neighbours have suffered the same symptoms. Some of them died.
Source: The mystery sickness bringing death and dismay to eastern Ethiopia
