Las Dhure Refugee Camp, Somalia (Click along images to enlarge)

In 1979, nearly two million refugees crossed from eastern Ethiopia (the Ogaden region) into Somalia, fleeing a two headed scourge, drought and starvation and an armed struggle between Ogaden tribal guerrillas and Ethiopian troops backed by Soviet arms and a Cuban military force of 13,000.

The malnourished and traumatized refugees, largely women and children, were settled in refugee camps supported by international relief agencies, like Las Dhure - a camp of nearly 40,000 people in northern Somalia. After working for World Vision in Indonesia, Dr. Avery became medical director of the medical staff in Las Dhure.

Life Magazine Parched Land of the Dying, 1981.