Darfur: Violence and Humanitarian Crisis in South Sudan Further Obscure Relentless Suffering and Destruction
Eric Reeves | 12 January 2014 | http://wp.me/p45rOG-1ap
The present obscuring of Darfur holds true as well for South Kordofan (especially the Nuba Mountains) and Blue Nile, perhaps the inevitable consequence of news media and diplomatic attention to the growing crisis in South Sudan. These sites of vast humanitarian crises in Sudan, of cruel human suffering and destruction, have gone almost completely unnoticed and unreported for the past month. And to be sure, the events and developments in South Sudan warrant the attention they are receiving; but only the regime in Khartoum can welcome the widespread ignoring of what is occurring in western Sudan, where the Darfur region has now entered its second decade of profoundly destructive conflict. That the region refuses to disappear entirely, that our understanding of this grim genocide by attrition survives even tenuously, is largely due to the reporting of Radio Dabanga.
There are or have been other reports of considerable importance—from the Sudan Tribune (cited here), the Darfur Relief and Documentation Center, the African Center for Justice and Peace Studies, and international human rights groups (Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and Physicians for Human Rights). Small Arms Survey has over the many years of violence provided a series of superbly informed reports. But reports from these sources have become fewer in number and detail, and it is Radio Dabanga alone that gives us a sense of the vast, pervasive, and destructive nature of the violence and deprivation that continue to define this immense area (only slightly smaller than South Sudan). And, dismayingly, if we had any doubts about the inadequacy or crippling lack of credibility in UN reporting—that of UNAMID in particular—Aicha Elbasri has dispelled those doubts definitively. As I wrote a month ago, reporting on an event in The Hague that I “attended” via Skype:
On Friday evening, December 13, 2013, Radio Dabanga celebrated its fifth anniversary of reporting on Darfur from The Netherlands. It was, inevitably, a somber event—and not simply because of the grim, often unspeakably cruel news that Radio Dabanga daily reports from all corners of Darfur. On this occasion, Aicha Elbasri, former spokesperson for the UN/African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) made clear her intense dismay at the lies that UNAMID tells about itself, lies that are replicated within the UN system: the Secretariat, the humanitarian agencies, and most consequentially, the UN Security Council.
And yet while well aware of realities in Darfur, and the terrible inadequacy of UNAMID in fulfilling its mandate to protect civilians and humanitarians, the Security Council does nothing. The deeply distorted reports from Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on UNAMID and Darfur are also reflections of a fundamental dishonesty in what UNAMID says—and does not say—publicly about the terrifyingly chaotic insecurity that has engulfed the region over the past several years. (December 14, 2013)
The day following this account, December 15, 2013, the Dutch newspaper Trouw published a story focusing on Elbasri ‘s remarkable account, offered here in translation (received from a Dutch native speaker, lightly edited for stylistic and idiomatic clarity):
The United Nations and the African Union are spreading lies about the war in the western [Darfur] region of Sudan. This is according to Aicha Elbasri (48), former spokesperson for the peacekeeping mission known as UNAMID, a UN and African Union [hybrid]. [Ms. Elbasri gave an interview to] Trouw, the first time she has done so since leaving her job with the mission over a year ago. She does so, dismayed at how the mission has performed.
Elbasri says the internal policies of the peacekeeping mission are designed to suggest that thing are getting better in Darfur. Since 2003 a bloody battle is ongoing between rebel groups and marginalized African tribes on the one side, and the primarily Arabic regime and Arabic militias at the other side. “In fact,” says Elbasri, “the war the past four years has become much worse. Arabs are now fighting Arabs and Africans are fighting Africans. And the Sudanese government is fighting everybody. UNAMID is sending reports to New York on a daily basis, but the UN remains silent about the violence.”
Trouw was allowed to look at evidence that shows how the UN is distorting the truth, but was obliged to promise not to publish these details, as such publication could harm the safety of UN staff and citizens in Darfur. The peacekeeping mission comprises a force of more than 20,000 men, authorized since 2007 to protect citizens in Darfur; their mandate permits the use of weapons [to protect civilians and humanitarians]. (“VN liegen over oorlog in Darfur,” or “The UN Lies Over War in Darfur,” Trouw [The Netherlands, December 14, 2013]; original text appears as Appendix A).
I have argued for a number of years that UNAMID and much of the UN humanitarian operation in Darfur have systematically distorted information, have yielded to Khartoum’s restrictions on dissemination of key humanitarian data and analyses, have failed to report on critical humanitarian issues (global morbidity, malnutrition, and mortality), and have repeatedly downplayed the continuing, intense violence affecting civilians. See for example:
• “Darfur: UN Failure and Mendacity Culminate in Avalanche of Violence,” August 12, 2012 http://sudanreeves.org/2012/08/13/3376/
• “Darfur in the Still Deepening Shadow of Lies,“ May 25, 2012 http://sudanreeves.org/2012/05/25/darfur-in-the-still-deepening-shadow-of-lies/
• “How many Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) are there in Darfur?” April 28, 2011 http://sudanreeves.org/2011/04/28/how-many-internally-displaced-persons-idps-are-there-in-darfur-dissent-magazine-on-line-april-28-2011/
• “Who Speaks for the UN on Darfur? The Role of Nigeria’s Ibrahim Gambari,“ August 25, 2010 http://sudanreeves.org/2010/08/25/who-speaks-for-the-un-on-darfur-the-role-of-nigerias-ibrahim-gambari/
• “Civilians at Risk: Human Security and Humanitarian Aid in Darfur,” January 27, 2010 http://sudanreeves.org/2010/01/17/civilians-at-risk-human-security-and-humanitarian-aid-in-darfur/
These lengthy accounts point not to accidental omissions, slight misrepresentations, or forgivable distortions: too often the UN accounts have been lies—outright mendacity. Just as culpably, UNAMID and the past UN humanitarian coordinator have not only lied, but they have acquiesced in Khartoum’s deliberate effort to prevent global reporting or even systematic collation of humanitarian data.
These efforts have resulted, to take one egregious example, in wild and expedient swings in figures promulgated as representing the number of Internally Displaced Persons (from 2.7 million people in January 2009; to 1.4 million in summer/fall 2013 according to OCHA; to the more recent UN figure of either 1.9 million (according to UN “officialdom”) or 2.3 million according to the UN Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN): (“An estimated 2.3 million people remain displaced by Darfur’s decade-long conflict” (IRIN [Nairobi], April 19, 2013). It is not clear whether IRIN meant to include Darfuri refugees in this figure, but even these numbers have been overtaken by subsequent reporting. In May 2013, the head of UN humanitarian operations, Valerie Amos, declared that 300,000 had already been newly displaced in the preceding four and a half months of 2013; hundreds of thousands were displaced in the subsequent months of 2013. And yet there has been a relentless and deliberate effort to minimize the number of IDPs, both to convince the world of the UN’s successful “intervention” in Darfur—and to please Khartoum, which is especially sensitive to reporting on issues of rape, mortality, and displacement.
Moreover, the Darfuri refugee population in eastern Chad (with some in Central Africa Republic) is rarely mentioned, even as it now stands at approximately 330,000 refugees in eastern Chad alone, and humanitarian conditions are often appalling in this remote and difficult region. Rapprochement between President Idriss Déby of Chad and President Omar al-Bashir of Sudan has made refugees much more vulnerable, on both sides of the border. Eastern Chad, along with Central African Republic, are crises unto themselves and must be highlighted as such.
What even the UN acknowledges is that more than 3 million Darfuris—half the pre-war population—remain in need of humanitarian assistance, some indeed desperate for food, water, and medicine. Many of these people will die, given present levels of insecurity and the inability of relief workers to move securely. Darfuris were the victims of the genocidal onslaught in the early years of the conflict, an avalanche of violence on the ground and from the air; however, ethnically-targeted human destruction has slowly become something more like be described as “genocide by attrition.” Many Arab groups in Darfur have been caught up in the current conflict, and suffer greatly as a result of the general crisis in Darfur as well as large-scale inter-tribal fighting. But it remains the case that the overwhelming numbers of victims are from the non-Arab, or African, tribal groups in Darfur. In addition to the vast number of displaced, and the even greater number in need of humanitarian assistance, human mortality has been shockingly high: extant data strongly suggest that the figure is in the range of 500,000 for Darfur and eastern Chad—from all causes—since conflict began in 2003.
Ms. Elbasri makes clear that the “lies” she has shown to Trouw are of a consequential nature and reveal unambiguously the mendacity of UNAMID and various UN personnel. This comes from a peacekeeping mission with an extraordinarily important, if challenging, mandate: protect civilians and humanitarians in Darfur, guided by the mandate of UN Security Council Resolution 1769; it was to have been guided as well by the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) negotiated with Khartoum in January 2008. From the very beginning, however, this SOFA has been ignored by the Khartoum regime, which routinely obstructs UNAMID’s movements and investigations. On several occasions, there has been clear complicity between Khartoum and Arab militia groups in attacks on UNAMID personnel; more than 50 blue-hatted peacekeepers have been killed in Darfur to date. The UN has on several occasions known of this complicity, but do date, no one responsible for the killing of UN peacekeepers has been brought to justice. It remains only for Ban Ki-moon to repeat his identically unctuous, but finally cynical “demand” that the perpetrators be rapidly brought to justice…by the Khartoum regime itself.
Why does UNAMID continue? What justifies continuation of what was once the world’s largest and most expensive peacekeeping operations, and is still a bloated (if under-equipped), costly, incompetent, indeed failing mission? There are many reasons, including the inability of the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations to justify pulling out forces when the violence is clearly expanding. In early summer 2012 head of UN peacekeeping Hervé Ladsous said “conditions on the ground” (i.e., improved human security) justified a draw-down of some 6,000 troops. But an extensive spike in violence was already well underway, and quickly made nonsense of such a claim. July through October of 2012 were extremely violent months in Darfur. There is also great fear of the humiliation of both the UN and African Union if the mission were to be terminated in the midst of uncontrolled violence, reminiscent in some ways of the UN abandonment of Rwanda in 1994. At least one expert on the operation points out the deep reluctance of African troop-contributing countries to end a mission that has proved quite lucrative, as remittances home by UNAMID force members are of considerable value to the economies of these countries.
UNAMID’s conspicuous failure hasn’t prevented the likes of former UN/AU Special Representative for UNAMID Ibrahim Gambari from celebrating “victory” amidst this ghastly suffering and destruction. In September 2012, at his retirement party, Gambari boasted, “I am gratified to note that barely 31 months on, all the objectives I set out to meet have largely been met.” This grotesquely disingenuous self-congratulation is of a piece with earlier assessments of human security in Darfur during his tenure as the political head UNAMID; the mission fare little better during the tenure of his predecessor, Rodolphe Adada of Congo. And it was on the basis of his assessments that Khartoum that Khartoum was emboldened to push yet again for premature returns of displaced persons, even when their villages had been destroyed, their lands appropriated by Arab militia groups (who have not hesitated to use violence in maintaining “ownership”), and insecurity throughout Darfur was rampant and growing rapidly. For his part, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon—who came into his first term promising to make Darfur a “signature issue—is happy to accept the anodyne accounts from UNAMID on the ground in Darfur. He has repeatedly demonstrated his willingness to accept demonstrably unrepresentative data as telling him all he needs to know about Darfur for his mandated quarterly reports.
Nothing is likely to change Darfur’s status as the world greatest invisible human catastrophe. The Prosecutor for the International Criminal Court, Gambian jurist Fatou Bensouda, spoke truth to power in addressing the UN Security Council, but her words about Darfur fell on essentially deaf ears:
“This council’s silence even when notified of clear failures and/or violations by UN member states of their obligations to comply with this council’s resolutions only serves to add insult to the plight of Darfur’s victims,” she said.
“The numbers of people killed, abducted and displaced continues to grow each year,” Bensouda said. “Alleged perpetrators of serious crimes against the civilian population will continue to commit crimes unless they are brought to justice,” she said. “It is now up to this council and to the states parties to heed the cries of the millions of victims of crimes which continue unabated in Darfur.”
Bensouda pleads in vain.
To its credit, Radio Dabanga continues to establish a record that informs us not only in the present, but will serve as an archive that should shame us all for decades. We hardly needed another rejoinder to the perversely self-righteous declaration, “never again!”; but Darfur, if nothing else, powerfully offers precisely such a rejoinder.
In the month since Ms. Albasri went public with her experience as spokesperson for UNAMID, Radio Dabanga has continued to report—relentlessly, resourcefully, remorselessly—what UNAMID will not. A number of Radio Dabanga’s dispatches from this intervening month are organized here by subject matter; only the date, headline, first sentence, and URL are indicated. A few more glimpses of Darfur’s eleven-year agony.
Photographs from Radio Dabanga dispatches can be found at: http://www.tumblr.com/blog/sudanreeves
§ 1 BOMBING CIVILIAN TARGETS: this particularly obscenity continues unabated, in clear violation of international law and in direct contravention of UN Security Council Resolution 1591 (March 2005). UNAMID confirms a negligible number of these reports, and the international community does nothing to halt them. An historical account of the extent of aerial attacks on civilians, particularly in Darfur, can be found at www.sudanbombing.org.
• Air raids kill three farmers in Darfur
ROKORO (2 Jan 2014) – Aerial bombardments north of Jebel Marra in Darfur killed two people on Wednesday morning. Speaking to Radio Dabanga, sources reported that on Wednesday morning 6am an Antonov… FULL STORY
• Two children injured in South Darfur air raid
NYALA (7 Jan 2014) – Two children were injured due to aerial bombardments on the village of Adam Kambal Nyala locality, in South Darfur. Speaking to Radio Dabanga, multiple sources from the area… FULL STORY
• Aerial bombardments on East Jebel Marra kill livestock
EAST JEBEL MARRA (22 Dec 2013) – A number of livestock were killed in aerial bombardments on Jebel Khor Mali El Kabir in East Jebel Marra on Sunday afternoon. No human casualties were reported. Speaking to Radio… full story
• Relatives of North Darfur air raid victims demand compensation
SHANGIL TOBAYA (9 Jan 2014) – More than 4,000 people in the area of Shangil Tobaya, North Darfur, on Tuesday attended the 40-day commemoration ceremony for the 14 people who died on 20 December last year when… FULL STORY
• Sudanese air raid in East Jebel Marra kills man
EAST JEBEL MARRA (10 Jan 2014) – A man died in a Sudanese Air Force bombardment in East Jebel Marra on Friday morning. Abu Shama was killed along with his horse and his cart destroyed, which was loaded with… FULL STORY
• 75 bombs on Jebel Marra since Sunday – thousands displaced
EAST JEBEL MARRA (31 Dec 2013) – The spokesman for the Association of Displaced People and Refugees of Darfur, Hussein Abu Sharati, says that the population of Rokoro locality to the west of Jebel Marra has been… FULL STORY
• Intensive air raids on Darfur’s East Jebel Marra
EAST JEBEL MARRA (29 Dec 2013) – Dozens of cattle were killed and vast areas of farmland and pastures burned to ashes as a result of heavy air raids by the Sudanese Air Force on Sunday on Wadi Toro in East Jebel… full story
• Sudanese Air Force bombs South Darfur villages
NYALA (29 Dec 2013) – The Sudanese Air Force on Saturday bombed more than nine villages south of Nyala, the capital of South Darfur, leading to displaced people, and the death of large numbers of… full story
• Darfur family of four killed by MiG jets strike East Jebel Marra
EAST JEBEL MARRA (12 Dec 2013) – A family of four was killed by aerial bombardments on Thursday morning in East Jebel Marra. Speaking to Radio Dabanga, a relative of the deceased said that two MiG jet fighters of… FULL STORY
§ 2 RAPE AND SEXUAL VIOLENCE: No census of reports can possibly suggest how widespread rape and sexual violence are in Darfur. An overview of what we do know has been compiled at: http://sudanreeves.org/2012/03/04/rape-as-a-continuing-weapon-of-war-in-darfur-reports-bibliography-of-studies-a-compendium-of-incidents/. What we may be sure that tens of thousands of Darfuri women and girls have been assaulted—these only the most recent:
• ‘Women experience violence daily’: West Darfur camp spokesperson
ABU SURUG (13 Dec 2013) – “The status of displaced Darfuri women is very bad because of the daily crimes and violence against them since 2003, when the conflict in Darfur started,” a spokesperson for the… FULL STORY
• Three women raped by armed herders in North Darfur
TAWILA (9 Jan 2014) – In Tawila locality, North Darfur, armed herdsmen raped three women on Tuesday. A farmer from the area told Radio Dabanga that the “government-backed herders” had released their… FULL STORY
• Women gang-raped, wood gatherers threatened in South Darfur
KASS (5 Jan 2014) – Two women of Erli camp for the displaced in South Darfur were repeatedly raped by militiamen for a full day on Saturday. Other camp residents were seriously injured in another… FULL STORY
• Two women raped in North Darfur
KABKABIYA (24 Dec 2013) – Militiamen raped two women from the Sibag El Kheil camp for the displaced in Kabkabiya, North Darfur on Sunday. One of the camp sheikhs told Radio Dabanga that two gunmen, wearing… full story
• Militiamen gang-rape three women in North Darfur
SHANGIL TOBAYA (18 Dec 2013) – Militiamen subjected three women from the Shangil Tobaya camp, North Darfur, to a gang-rape ordeal for more than seven hours on Wednesday morning. Residents of the Shangil Tobaya… FULL STORY
• Displaced woman assaulted by militiamen in Mershing, South Darfur
MERSHING (13 Dec 2013) – Militiamen seriously injured a woman from the Silo camp for the displaced in Mershing locality, South Darfur on Thursday. They stabbed her three times in her back and chest… FULL STORY
§ 3 ARSON: A notoriously difficult crime for which to establish clear guilt and responsibility. But there are simply too many fires of a highly suspicious nature, especially in IDP camps, not to note them:
• Fire destroys camp school in North Darfur – arson suspected
EL FASHER (31 Dec 2013) – A devastating fire destroyed a basic school for girls on Monday evening in the Abu Shouk camp, west of El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur. One of the sheikhs of the Abu Shouk… FULL STORY
• Fire breaks out, kills three young children in El Salam, Darfur
EL SALAM (10 Jan 2014) – Three children burned to death when a fire broke out in Abu Salal in El Salam locality, South Darfur. A witness told Radio Dabanga that the fire caused the deaths of two sisters… FULL STORY
• Vaccines destroyed by fire in West Darfur capital
EL GENEINA (1 Jan 2014) – Substantial stocks of vaccines were destroyed in a fire that broke out in the early hours of Tuesday morning at the immunisation office in El Geneina, capital of West Darfur…. FULL STORY
• Three children die as house burns in West Darfur
MURNEI (26 Dec 2013) – Three children were burned to death in the Murnei camp for the displaced in West Darfur on Thursday. One of the camp sheikhs told Radio Dabanga that a fire broke out at about 3pm… full story
• Fire victims in South Darfur’s Kalma camp still living rough
KALMA (18 Dec 2013) – Some 42 families in Kalma camp for the displaced in South Darfur are living in very difficult humanitarian conditions after they lost their shelters in the fire that broke out on… FULL STORY
• Fire in South Darfur camp destroys 28 shelters
KALMA (15 Dec 2013) – An extensive fire in Kalma camp in South Darfur reduced 28 houses to ashes on Sunday morning, Hussein Abu Sharati, the spokesman for the Association of Displaced Persons and… FULL STORY
§ 4 ATTACKS ON IDP CAMPS, residents, and those attempting to farm from camps (typically by Arab militia groups). These attacks have increased in number and brutality in recent years, and UNAMID appears powerless to stop them:
• Gunmen kill one camp resident, rob others in South Darfur
KUBUM (31 Dec 2013) – A resident of Kubum camp for the displaced in South Darfur was shot dead by militiamen on Monday. Speaking to Radio Dabanga, another Kubum camp resident reported that on Monday… FULL STORY
• Six people killed in clash between militia, SAF in South Darfur camp
NYALA (10 Jan 2014) – At least six people were killed in a clash between Sudanese army forces and militiamen inside the market in El Salam camp for the displaced in Bielel locality, South Darfur, on… FULL STORY
• Gunfire terrorises camp residents in South Darfur
NYALA (3 Jan 2014) – Militiamen terrorised El Salam camp in Nyala locality, South Darfur, when they fired a hail of bullets into the air on Thursday evening. Sheikh Mahjoub Adam Tabaldiya of El Salam… FULL STORY
• Gunmen injure three in North Darfur
KABKABIYA (3 Jan 2014) – Three residents of Hai El Mawashi camp for the displaced in Kabkabiya, North Darfur were seriously injured on Thursday in an attack by government-backed gunmen east of Kabkabiya… FULL STORY
• South Darfur camp resident beaten comatose
KONDOBE (3 Jan 2014) – Barima Ibrahim Mohamed (75) of Kondobe camp in Sirba locality, West Darfur, is in a coma in Kondobe hospital after he was beaten and whipped by government-backed militiamen on… FULL STORY
• Farmer slain in Central Darfur robbery
FORO BARANGA (29 Dec 2013) – A farmer was shot dead on Saturday by militiamen in Foro Baranga locality in Central Darfur. A relative of the deceased told Radio Dabanga that at about 7.30pm on Saturday… full story
• Camp for displaced in South Darfur stormed, shop owner shot
MERSHING (28 Dec 2013) – A group of militiamen stormed El Tom Kitir camp for the displaced in Mershing locality, South Darfur, shot a camp resident and looted his shop in the early hours of Friday morning… full story
• Herdsmen assault West Darfur farmers
KEREINIK (26 Dec 2013) – Four farmers, including two women, were injured by armed herdsmen in Kereinek locality, West Darfur, on Thursday. One of the farmers reported to Radio Dabanga that about ten … full story
Cattle owners clash with gunmen in Central Darfur
GARSILA (12 Dec 2013) – One man was killed and others wounded in Wadi Salih locality in Central Darfur on Thursday in clashes between gunmen and a cattle owners. Speaking to Radio Dabanga witnesses said… FULL STORY
• North Darfur camp residents assaulted
KASSAB (22 Dec 2013) – In two separate incidents, residents of Kassab camp for the displaced in North Darfur were assaulted on Saturday. Sheikh Taher Ismail of Kassab camp told Radio Dabanga that a… full story
• South Darfur camp residents refuse DRA request to return to their villages
KUBUM (19 Dec 2013) – Residents of the Kubum camp for the displaced in South Darfur have refused the efforts of the Darfur Transitional Authority (DRA) to return them to their villages… The camp residents, however, refused, because of the rampant insecurity and the “complete lack of basic services” in the areas of origin. FULL STORY
• Two displaced abducted in North Darfur
KABKABIYA (16 Dec 2013) – Unidentified militiamen stormed the North Darfur El Amiriya Wasat camp for the displaced and abducted two camp residents. One of the camp residents told Radio Dabanga that on… FULL STORY
• Straw collectors attacked by militiamen in West Darfur
KEREINIK (16 December 2013) – Four displaced were injured, two of them seriously, in an attack by militiamen in Kereinik locality, West Darfur. A relative of one of the victims told Radio Dabanga that on… FULL STORY
• Camp resident murdered, brother injured in South Darfur
GEREIDA (15 Dec 2013) – A resident of Gereida camp for the displaced in South Darfur was murdered on Saturday. According to a relative of the victim, “government-backed militiamen” attacked Yahya Eisa… FULL STORY
• Many flee Abata after army, rebels clash in Central Darfur
ZALINGEI (16 Dec 2013) – The Zalingei camps in Central Darfur are witnessing a wave of newly displaced, as a result of the violent clashes between the Sudan Armed Forces and the Sudan Revolutionary Front… FULL STORY
• South Darfur: 5 killed, 7 injured in attack on IDPs camp
January 11, 2014 (KHARTOUM) – An unidentified armed group has attacked Al-Salam camp, which is located 8 kilometers south of Nyala, the capital of South Darfur state, killing 5 people including 3 (from the SUDAN TRIBUNE]
§ 5 HUMANITARIAN shortages, denials of access, health indicators, assaults on relief efforts. These are rarely mentioned by the UN, thus enforcing a silence within the International Nongovernment (Relief) Organizations, which rightly fear expulsion by Khartoum. Even more rarely noted is the severe lack of educational opportunities for an entire generation of young Darfuris. This will be immensely consequential if Darfur ever sees peace again.
• More than 3.2 million Darfuris in need: UN
EL FASHER (16 Dec 2013) – Close to 1.9 million people are displaced in Darfur, according to Ali El Za’tari, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Sudan. “We estimate that the displaced people in Darfur are… FULL STORY
• Women and children die of anaemia, typhoid in South Darfur
GIREIDA (3 Jan 2014) – The citizens of Gireida locality in South Darfur have complained about the high number of deaths among pregnant women due to bleeding and anaemia. Also an outbreak of typhoid and… FULL STORY
• Severe water crisis in West Darfur capital
EL GENEINA (8 Jan 2014) – For the last month, the service pipes transporting water in El Geneina, the capital of West Darfur, have been empty. However, the water corporation has not provided clear reasons… FULL STORY
• El Radoom lacks security, health services: citizens, South Darfur
EL RADOOM (10 Jan 2014) – The residents of El Radoom locality in South Darfur state have complained of a lack of security, as armed herders keep attacking farms, and of services, especially in the fields… FULL STORY
• Attack on doctor in Central Darfur, patients flee hospital
DELEIG (6 Jan 2014) – Patients, their visitors, and personnel of the Deleig hospital, in Wadi Salih locality, Central Darfur on Sunday fled from the hospital when a gunman attempted to kill a doctor…. FULL STORY
• Gunmen loot car of nutrition organisation in Central Darfur
NIERTETI (10 Jan 2014) – Pro-government militiamen hijacked a Toyota vehicle rented by a British organisation in the area of Thur in Nierteti, Central Darfur state on Thursday evening. A witness told… FULL STORY
• Hunger in Central Darfur camps
CENTRAL DARFUR (15 Dec 2013) – The more than 43 camps for the displaced in Central Darfur are facing a “tragic and catastrophic situation due to the lack of food”, the coordinator of the camps told Radio… FULL STORY
• British Tearfund office plundered in Central Darfur
NIERTETI (17 Dec 2013) – Militiamen robbed the British Tearfund organisation working in the field of nutrition and health care in Nierteti, Central Darfur on Tuesday morning, an eyewitness told Radio Dabanga. The thieves took SDG123 million, two computers, four laptops, three mobile phones, cameras, a television, and other items of value from the Tearfund office. FULL STORY
• ‘Once Darfur is secure again, refugees will return by themselves’: Chad camp head
KOUNONGOU CAMP (8 Jan 2014) – The Sudanese refugees in the camps in eastern Chad complained about the reduction of food rations and services provided by international humanitarian organisations. Speaking to… FULL STORY
• North Darfur water crisis: Omda calls on authorities to dig more wells
KABKABIYA (6 Jan 2014) – The residents of the area of Wadi Jidara in North Darfur are suffering from a severe drinking water crisis. Omda Eisa Osman from Wadi Jidara reported to Radio Dabanga, that the… FULL STORY
• ‘Sirba camps for the displaced are now quasi-towns’: West Darfur HAC officials
SIRBA (8 Jan 2014) – The displaced of all ten Sirba camps in West Darfur State have been told by the Sudanese government’s Humanitarian Affairs Commission (HAC) of the Sirba locality that the camps… FULL STORY
• School children in South Darfur camp suffer from cold
KALMA (19 Dec 2013) – The residents of Kalma camp in South Darfur have requested the international organisations working in the camp to provide them with tarpaulin covers, blankets, and warm clothing… full story
• Frustration high among youth in South Darfur’s Kalma camp
(6 Jan 2014) The youth of Kalma camp in South Darfur are suffering from unemployment, a lack of educational opportunities, anxiety and depression. FULL STORY
• Destroyed classroom and cold halt school year in West Darfur
SIRBA (20 Dec 2013) – Pupils of Kondobe basic school in Sirba locality, West Darfur have to halt their school year if no new classroom is built to replace the first one, which got destroyed. One of the… full story
• Health centre plundered in Central Darfur
NIERTETI (3 Jan 2014) – Gunmen wearing military uniforms plundered a health centre in the city of Nierteti in Central Darfur early Friday morning. Five “government-backed” gunmen in ragged military… FULL STORY
• Hospitals in North Darfur in urgent need of new equipment: Health minister
EL FASHER (23 Dec 2013) – The minister of Health and deputy governor of North Darfur state, Abu Abbas Abdallah Tayeb Jiddo acknowledged that the hospitals and health centres in the state are urgently in… full story
• Increase in HIV/AIDS cases in North Darfur
EL FASHER (1 Jan 2014) – North Darfur’s Minister of Health, Abu Abbas Abdallah Tayeb has announced an increase of HIV/AIDS cases in 2013. The minister said that of the 3,000 people screened in the state… FULL STORY
• Fever kills children in overcrowded North Darfur hospital
SARAF OMRA (27 Dec 2013) – Residents of Saraf Omra locality in North Darfur have complained about the high death rate among children due to the outbreak of fevers. “24 children died in the hospital during a… full story
• Disease, thirst, shortages in Darfur camps
DARFUR (26 Dec 2013) – A severe shortage of shelter and matrasses has contributed to the spread of colds and coughs among the displaced El Salam camp in Nyala, the capital of South Darfur. Sheikh… full story
• Thirst as drinking water hits almost $9 a barrel in East Darfur
ADILA (24 Dec 2013) – The people living in the areas of El Nabag and El Hoda in Adila locality, East Darfur, have been suffering from a severe drinking water crisis for the last four days. One of the… full story
• Income-generating projects needed: West Darfur camp resident
SIRBA (23 Dec 2013) – The residents of the Abu Suruj camp for the displaced, north of El Geneina, the capital of West Darfur, for whom the distribution of food rations stopped nearly two years ago… full story
• Water cut lasts due to unrepaired pumps in South Darfur camp
NYALA (20 Dec 2013) – For three consecutive weeks there has been a water cut in the Otash camp for displaced people in Nyala, capital of South Darfur, without a solution in sight. A sheikh from… full story
• Acute drinking water crisis continues in South Darfur camp
OTASH (17 Dec 2013) – The 128,000 residents of the Otash camp for the displaced in Nyala, capital of South Darfur are facing an acute drinking water crisis due to the lack of fuel to run the pumps. The… FULL STORY
• Acute shortage of medics in North Darfur
EL FASHER (16 Dec 2013) – The hospitals in North Darfur are facing an acute shortage of specialists, doctors and assisting technical staff, state government statistics revealed. Especially in… FULL STORY
• Food rations reduced for North Darfur displaced
KABKABIYA (15 Dec 2013) – The residents of the Kabkabiya camps in North Darfur for the displaced are suffering from rampant insecurity, an acute shortage of food, and increasing prices, due to the closure… FULL STORY
• Sudanese refugees in Chad reject removal of camp hospital
KOUNONGOU CAMP (19 Dec 2013) – The residents of the Kounongou refugee camp in eastern Chad have rejected the Chadian government’s decision to move the camp hospital to a place located 3km northwest of the camp… full story
• Official document fees too high: North Darfur displaced
KUTUM (15 Dec 2013) – The fees for official documents, such as a birth certificate or a national number, have become unaffordably high for the displaced in North Darfur, a camp sheikh said. The sheikh… FULL STORY
§ 6 OTHER FORMS OF VIOLENCE AND LAWLESSNESS CREATE INSECURITY:
Other forms of violence, lawlessness creating massive insecurity for civilians and humanitarians; travel on most roads is impossible without escort. This violence has become endemic.
• Central Darfur market still closed after Misseriya-Khazam clashes
DELEIG (12 Jan 2014) – The weekly market of Deleig locality in Central Darfur is still closed. Residents of Deleig town told Radio Dabanga that on Saturday the authorities announced that the weekly… FULL STORY
• Armed robbers murder man, injure his mother in South Darfur
NYALA (12 Jan 2014) – A young man was shot dead and his mother seriously wounded by militiamen on Saturday, in Nyala, the capital of South Darfur. In Gereida a relative of the deceased told Radio… FULL STORY
• Two killed, four wounded by militiamen in South Darfur
GEREIDA (12 Jan 2014) – In Gereida locality, South Darfur, two people were killed and four others were wounded by militiamen in two separate incidents on Saturday. Speaking to Radio Dabanga, sources said… FULL STORY
• Shop and house plundered, woman shot in Central Darfur
NIERTETI (12 Jan 2014) – A shop owner was assaulted and a woman seriously injured on Saturday in Gurnei village, Nierteti locality in Central Darfur, after being shot by militiamen. A customer… FULL STORY
• Militiamen kill young boy, beat and rob others in North Darfur
KABKABIYA / SARAF OMRA (22 Dec 2013) – In North Darfur, militiamen murdered a seven-year-old boy in the market district of Kabkabiya, on Saturday. On the same day, lorry passengers were robbed in Saraf Omra. Speaking… full story
• Militiamen loot market traders in Birkat Seira, North Darfur
SARAF OMRA (28 Dec 2013) – A group of militiamen looted and destroyed a number of shops at the Birkat Seira market in Saraf Omra locality, North Darfur on Thursday. One of the robbed traders told Radio… full story
• Highway robberies curtail road transport to Darfur
KHARTOUM (31 Dec 2013) – The Sudanese National Chamber of Transport has announced the suspension of lorry transport to the Darfur states because of the continuing assaults and armed robberies. The member… FULL STORY
• Militiamen rob family, hijack lorries in South Darfur
NYALA / KASS (22 Dec 2013) – In two separate incidents in South Darfur on Saturday, people were attacked and robbed by militiamen. In Nyala, the capital of South Darfur, unidentified gunmen shot at the family… full story
• ‘Militia attacks in Sudan’s West Kordofan are war crimes’: Free Forum
EL FULA (1 Jan 2014) – The Shamam Free Forum of people living in the areas of the Misseriya tribe announced that the crimes recently committed by government-backed militias in various parts of West… FULL STORY
Police forces clash with militiamen in South Darfur
MALAJA (31 Dec 2013) – Violent clashes between the police and militiamen in Malaja in South Darfur on Monday caused residents of the neighbourhood to flee. Troops on both sides were injured. The head of… FULL STORY
• Central Bank of Sudan vehicle hijacked in South Darfur
KASS (29 Dec 2013) – In Kass locality in South Darfur on Saturday, militiamen hijacked a Toyota belonging to the Zalingei branch of the Bank of Sudan. Speaking to Radio Dabanga sources… full story
• Militiamen rob market traders in Birkat Seira, North Darfur
SARAF OMRA (28 Dec 2013) – A group of militiamen looted and destroyed a number of shops at the Birkat Seira market in Saraf Omra locality, North Darfur on Thursday. One of the robbed traders told Radio… full story
• East Darfur residents have had it with assaulting militiamen
ABU KARINKA (28 Dec 2013) – Residents of the area of Dar Es Salaam in Abu Karinka locality, East Darfur, complained about the deterioration of the … FULL STORY
• Militiamen rob family, hijack lorries in South Darfur
NYALA / KASS (22 Dec 2013) – In two separate incidents in South Darfur on Saturday, people were attacked and robbed by militiamen. In Nyala, the capital of South Darfur, unidentified gunmen shot at the family… full story
• Central Darfur fuel trader, wife shot and robbed
ABATA (16 Dec 2013) – A merchant and his wife were seriously injured in an attack by militiamen in Kuteiri village, east of Abata in Central Darfur, an eyewitness reported to Radio Dabanga. Four … FULL STORY
• Gunmen hijack lorry, rob passengers in South Darfur
KASS (17 Dec 2013) – Gunmen on Monday hijacked a Nissan lorry transporting more than 30 passengers from Kass in South Darfur to Zalingei, the capital of Central Darfur. One of the passengers told… FULL STORY
• Hamar-Ma’alia clashes displace more than 2,000: OCHA
ADILLA (19 Dec 2013) – A preliminary report by a national organisation operating in Adilla locality, East Darfur, announced in that an estimated 1,500 people (about 300 families) have arrived in the… full story
• Militiamen hold-up lorry in North Darfur
SARAF OMRA (12 Dec 2013) – Militiamen robbed the passengers of a lorry in Saraf Omra locality in North Darfur on Wednesday. A passenger reported to Radio Dabanga that “government-backed militiamen in two… FULL STORY
• Ransom demand for abducted policeman in Central Darfur
ZALINGEI (12 Dec 2013) – An armed group abducted a policeman from Zalingei, the capital of Central Darfur on Tuesday A relative reported to Radio Dabanga that policeman Abdallah Mohamed Mukhtar, who works… FULL STORY
• Decade of conflict, insecurity decays Darfur’s cash crops: think tank
NAIROBI (22 Dec 2013) – The conflict in Darfur since 2003 has severely affected the production and trade in peanuts, gum arabic, and sesame by displacing farmers and creating insecurity, according to a… full story
Appendix A: The Dutch original of article in Trouw:
“VN liegen over oorlog in Darfur,” Trouw (Klaas van Dijken, 14 December 2013)
De Verenigde Naties en de Afrikaanse Unie verspreiden leugens over de oorlog in de West-Soedanese regio Darfur. Dat zegt Aicha Elbasri (48), ex-woordvoerder van de vredesmissie Unamid van de Verenigde Naties en de Afrikaanse Unie tegen Trouw. Voor het eerst spreekt Elbasri vrijuit, nadat ze ruim een half jaar geleden uit onvrede over de gang van zaken haar functie neerlegde.
Volgens Elbasri is het interne beleid van de vredesmissie om te vertellen dat het steeds béter gaat in Darfur. Daar is sinds 2003 een bloedige strijd gaande tussen rebellengroepen uit gemarginaliseerde Afrikaanse stammen enerzijds, en de overwegend Arabische overheid en Arabische milities anderzijds. “Terwijl”, zegt Elbasri, “de oorlog de laatste vier jaar juist vele malen erger is geworden. Arabieren vechten nu ook tegen andere Arabieren, en Afrikanen tegen andere Afrikanen. De Soedanese overheid vecht tegen iedereen. Dagelijks stuurt Unamid rapporten naar New York, maar de VN zwijgen over het geweld.”
Trouw mocht bewijs zien dat de VN de waarheid verdraaien, met de belofte niet in detail te treden, omdat anders zowel burgers als VN-personeel in Darfur gevaar kunnen lopen. De ruim twintigduizend man sterke vredesmissie is sinds 2007 in Darfur om daar vooral burgers te beschermen en mag wapens gebruiken.
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Eric Reeves
Smith College
Northampton, MA 01063
413-585-3326
ereeves@smith.edu
Website: www.sudanreeves.org
Eric Reeves’ new book-length study of greater Sudan (Compromising With Evil: An archival history of greater Sudan, 2007 – 2012 is available at no cost from: www.CompromisingWithEvil.org; review commentary at: http://wp.me/p45rOG-15S)