Darfur violence signals return to "dark days": HRW
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March 23, 2014 (KHARTOUM) - The Sudanese government and its allied
militia have renewed ground and air attacks on civilians in villages
in Darfur as the security situation in the troubled western region
continues to unravel.
JPEG - 53.9 kb
A group of women build a shelter in Kalma camp for internally
displaced people in South Darfur on 9 March 2014 (Photo: UNAMID/Albert
Gonzalez Farran)
In one of the latest incidences, about 300 heavily armed men attacked
a camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in South Darfur's Khor
Abeche on Saturday, setting fire to dozens of shelters and stealing
livestock belonging to the residents, the African Union-United Nations
Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) said in a statement on Monday.
According to Human Rights watch, the Sudanese army (SAF) and rapid
support forces (RSF) - also known as the Janjaweed militia - launched
separate attacks on 45 ethnic Fur and Zaghawa villages in South Darfur
in late February and early March.
Community leaders from the Hijier and Um Gunia villages provided HRW
with a list of 38 civilians who were killed in the attacks, and the
names of 10 others who remain unaccounted for. HRW heard that many of
the dead bodies were left unburied as people fled.
The New York-based advocacy group says clashes between government and
rebel forces in Darfur have also increased significantly in recent
weeks, describing the escalating violence in the region as "a return
to the dark days of the past".
The latest attacks came after rebel forces earlier fled the area, and
appear to have deliberately targeted civilians.
Eyewitnesses told HRW that government aircrafts bombed the area,
followed by ground attacks by forces travelling in land cruisers and
on horses and camels.
The RSF have since moved toward eastern Jebel Mara and to North
Darfur, attacking villages in both locations, said HRW, citing local
media reports.
UNAMID said that as a result of the latest incident on Saturday, at
least 2,000 IDPs had sought refuge at its base in Khor Abeche, where
one person was reportedly killed.
The mission has also deployed additional peacekeepers after an
estimated 1,000 people gathered at its Korma base in North Darfur
after Kobe town and neighbouring villages were attacked by armed men
on Friday.
It says it is working closely with humanitarian partners to provide
emergency assistance to those in need.
The fresh wave of violence has uprooted about 50,000 people in South
Darfur alone, while clashes between militias, including a rebel force
led by Musa Hilal, who recently defected from the government, have
displaced a further 65,000 people in North Darfur, according to UN
estimates.
NO END IN SIGHT
A recent report by Amnesty International found that serious violations
of international humanitarian and human rights law continue to be
committed against the civilian population on an almost daily basis,
describing the situation on the ground as "dismal".
It says there appears "no end in sight" to the ongoing cycle of
violence plaguing the war-torn region.
The report, titled We can't endure anymore: The impact of
inter-communal violence on civilians in Central Darfur, documents
cases of looting, rape and murder which it says have occurred against
a backdrop of protracted inter-communal violence, clashes between
government and rebel groups and attacks on civilians by armed
militias.
"Darfur's culture of traditional justice, the lack of accountability
for human rights and IHL (International Humanitarian Law) violations
has contributed to the ongoing violence and the pervasive culture of
impunity in the region," the report said.
"Impunity extends to the highest level of government and militia
leaders. Victims have no hope at the moment of accessing justice,
truth or reparations nationally," it adds.
INTER-COMMUNAL VIOLENCE
Competition over land and resources has added another dimension to the
11-year conflict, leading to an upsurge in inter-clan fighting between
different Arab tribes in North, Central and South Darfur, according to
a recent report released by Amnesty International.
The report found that tribal conflict was directly linked to Sudan's
declining economic situation.
The UN refugee agency (UNHCR) estimates that 460,000 people were
internally displaced last year alone due to inter-communal violence -
the highest number since the height of the conflict in 2004.
Meanwhile, South Darfur state governor, Adam Mahmoud Jar Al-Nabi, has
defended the deployment of the RSF and denied troops were responsible
for committing abuses, saying units are well-trained and disciplined.
The feared Janjaweed militias were initially mobilised by the Sudanese
government to quell the insurgency that broke out in Sudan's in 2003
and has since displaced more than 2 million people.
(ST)
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