KHARTOUM, 6 October 2005 — The United Nations mission in Sudan said yesterday it had no plans to leave the war-torn western region of Darfur despite an upsurge in violence that has left at least 44 people dead.
“The UN has no intention of pulling out of Darfur due to the violence currently taking place in the region,” UN spokeswoman Radhia Achouri told reporters in Khartoum.
The UN humanitarian coordinator, Jan Egeland, warned on Sept. 28 that the recent escalation of violence in the region could disrupt the agency’s operations and relief work in Darfur. “If it continues to be so dangerous to do humanitarian work, we may not be able to sustain our operations for 2.5 million people,” Egeland said.
The security situation in Darfur deteriorated sharply in September after rebels seized two government-held towns and Arab militias loyal to Khartoum raided camps for displaced persons in the region. “Security must be restored and maintained. It is the responsibility of both the government and the rebel movements to put an end to fighting against each other and to the armed banditry as well,” Achouri said.
The Darfur conflict pits two rebel groups, the Sudan Liberation Army and the Justice and Equality movement, against Sudanese forces and the pro-government Arab militias, the Janjaweed.
Since rebels launched the uprising in February 2003 more than 300,000 civilians have been killed and over two million driven from their homes, according to UN relief agencies.
Last week, the African Union, which is tasked with monitoring a cease-fire between the warring parties, implicated government forces in attacks on camps for displaced persons in western Darfur, a charge Khartoum strongly denied. “The UN is concerned about reports of attacks on IDPs (internally displaced persons)... It is the first time to hear that IDPs have become targets,” Achouri said.
The AU mission chief said the AU is prepared to produce film and pictures to prove Sudan’s security forces are attacking civilians there, despite Khartoum’s denials. Baba Gana Kingibe, leader of an AU team, told reporters he had confidence in an AU report that all parties to the conflict were breaking the truce and that the violence had included attacks by government helicopter gunships.
The Sudanese Army has denied the allegations, saying the AU report was based on comments from aid agency officials in Darfur that were unreliable. “We reported what we have observed.
The report we received from the field said helicopter gunships were observed overhead in two different locations in Darfur,” Kingibe told reporters at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa. “We have films and pictures. We do not make a statement of that nature, grave as they are, without evidence. If necessary we are ready to show them,” he said.
