Activists: Central Reserve Police stealing from displaced people

The displaced people of Zamzam camp in north Darfur told Radio Dabanga that there are organized robbery operations which are carried out by the Central Reserve Police, which is locally known as ‘Abu Tira’. The displaced people said that Abu Tira police rob them of their mobile phones and money at gunpoint and one activist confirmed to Radio Dabanga that the forces were brought under the pretext of protecting the camp on 31 May. The activist also confirmed that since the end of last month and up to yesterday, the complaints of the displaced people against the robbery operations of Abu Tira have reached more than 80 complaints to the administration of the camp with the total sum of money robbed reaching up to two hundred and seventy million Sudanese pounds in addition to two hundred mobile phones stolen from the displaced people.

The activist called on to the international community and UNAMID to take steps to protect the displaced people from Abu Tira police. The activists said that these police (Abu Tira police) were in fact not a police force at all, but a local militia recruited and brought to the camp with the aim of breaking down the camp and harming the displaced people. It was stated that what was happening was something that had never taken place since they were displaced in 2003 and affirmed that the police that was guarding the camp before never caused a single complaint.