Displaced continue to face violence in Darfur

A displaced farmer died on Saturday in Kabkabiya, North Darfur, after being shot. Another violent incident took place in Central Darfur in which one man was killed and four others were injured. In eastern Chad, close to Darfur, a displaced girl was raped.

A listener from Kabkabiya told Radio Dabanga that gunmen on camels attacked Yousef Arbab (27), while he was working on his farm in the Tabukino area, six kilometres southeast of Kabkabiya. According to the woman, they threatened him before shooting.

She said that Arbab was injured in the mouth and was transferred to Kabkabiya Hospital where he died later that night.

A report of the violent incident was lodged with the Kabkabiya police.

North Darfur has faced widespread attacks, killings, rape, theft, and the destruction of farms that have left tens of thousands displaced, especially during the agricultural season.

Earlier this month, another displaced farmer was killed by three armed men in Kabkabiya.

Last month, displaced farmers already warned about the lack of security and the attacks they face on their farms. They demanded better protection during the agricultural season.

During the war in Darfur, Darfuri farmers faced atrocious attacks on their villages by government-backed Arab herding militias called the Janjaweed in which their farms were occupied. Millions had to flee and found refuge in camps for the displaced but even these were frequently attacked.

Many people displaced by the war in Darfur since 2003 do still not feel safe enough to permanently return to their original farms. Often, they come back during the agricultural season to tend to their farms or commute from the camps.

Shot

Another violent incident took place in Central Darfur in which Yousef Yagoub (32) was killed and four others were wounded when gunmen opened fire on a passenger lorry in the Boronga Tora area near Guldo in West Jebel Marra locality on Saturday.

Adam Okar told Radio Dabanga that gunmen opened fire on a vehicle bringing firewood to Guldo for a social occasion on Saturday afternoon.

The injured were taken to Guldo Hospital. One of them was taken to Nierteti and from there to Nyala Hospital in a serious condition after being shot in the stomach.

A report was filed with the Unified Police and the army garrison in Guldo, after which forces moved to the scene of the incident. A report was also filed at the Unified Police in Nierteti, who sent three vehicles, an ambulance, and joint forces members to the crime scene in Boronga Tora.

Okar said that the injured are Abdelazim Ayoub (20), Mubarak Ibrahim (18), Munir Yahya (17), and Mohamed Shareef (17).

Raped

A Sudanese girl living In the Kechagen refugee camp in eastern Chad, close to Darfur, was raped last Thursday evening in the Marra area where the camp is located.

A relative of the girl said that unknown men attacked the victim, and other girls from the camp, while they were outside the camp to collect firewood. He explained that the victim could not escape like the other girls and the attackers managed to rape her.

The victim was transferred to the camp's health centre and that they had filed a report. The relative noted that investigations are continuing in the area of Um Leyona in Abeche.

Last week, Radio Dabanga reported that women and girls displaced by violence and lawlessness in Darfur face the additional constant threat of rape and gender-based violence (GBV), long used as an instrument of terror by the forces and militias of the former regime, and now at the hand of “armed and organised” marauding bandits.

Activists have reported 17 cases of rape at Zamzam camp, south of the North Darfur capital El Fasher, since the current spate of armed attacks on dozens of villages began in July and August.