‘170,000 newly displaced in rebel-held South Kordofan, Sudan’

Since April this year, more than 170,000 people have been displaced in parts of South Kordofan controlled by the rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N). The South Kordofan and Blue Nile Coordination Unit (SKBNCU), an informal locally-led unit to support more effective humanitarian assistance to the conflict-affected civilians in the two areas, reported this last month. This includes over 56,000 people newly displaced in June by fighting between Sudanese forces and the SPLM-N, SKBNCU reported. No new civilian displacement resulting from military or security incidents in Blue Nile was reported in June. The latest battle between the rebels and the Sudanese forces dates from 28 June and was reported by the SPLM-N. It claimed to have killed 15 army and militia troops in El Atmor area, South Kordofan. In June, the rebels reported that since 18 May, 35,615 people in Um Dorain have been displaced following aerial bombardments by the military base in Kadugli. The human rights organisation Amnesty International has claimed that civilian areas were attacked by the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) in May. “Which is not only a clear violation of international humanitarian law but may also constitute as a war crime.” File photo: Children who took shelter in the Nuba Mountains, South Kordofan.Related: SPLM-N attacks El Atmor in South Kordofan (29 June 2014) Attacks on South Kordofan ‘may constitute war crime’: Amnesty Int (25 June 2014)New displacement in Sudan’s South Kordofan and Blue Nile (1 May 2014)