The Gambian authorities announced on Saturday that they have counted more than 6,000 displaced people and refugees in the country, fleeing a week of violence between the army and gunmen in the Casamance region in southern Senegal.
The Senegalese army had announced that it had launched an operation on March 13 against militants in the Casamance region, which is separated by the Gambia from northern Senegal.
The Senegalese army said the "main objective is to dismantle the bases" of rebel military commander Salif Sadio, located along the northern border with Gambia.
The Gambia National Agency for Crisis Management stated in an official document that the number of people fleeing the violence, who have been counted since March 13, has reached 6,350 people, including 4,508 displaced people.
"Because of the situation in the Casamance region of Senegal, the Fonni-Kansala region has become a safe haven for refugees and displaced people alike," she added, noting that "these people can no longer stay in their homes due to the proximity of the fighting, and in general due to the general repercussions of the ongoing conflict."
The Fonni Kansala region is located in the Gambian lands on the Casamance border, and is close to the area where the battles are taking place between the Senegalese army and the militants of the Movement of Democratic Forces in Casamance, which has been fighting for the independence of this region since 1982.
The Gambian government has promised to help the displaced, and President Adama Barrow has ordered increased patrols near the border, saying it would protect the country "from any external threat".
Casamance gunmen, accused of trafficking in timber and hemp, have taken refuge in Gambia or Guinea-Bissau, which also borders Senegal.
The conflict resumed to a limited extent last year when Senegal launched an offensive to expel them, and Senegalese President Macky Sall made establishing a "final peace" in Casamance a priority for his second term.