More than 100 people reported dead in new attacks on West Darfur capital

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Large groups of armed men launched attacks on El Geneina, capital of West Darfur, on Friday. In the violence that lasted three days, more than 100 people were reportedly killed. The governor of Darfur announced the formation of a new joint protection force in the region.

Activists told Radio Dabanga on Sunday morning that the attacks on Friday and Saturday left at least 70 people dead. More than 300 others were wounded but had to be provisionally treated as the health facilities were closed.

The Darfur Bar Association reported yesterday that at least 100 people were killed since Friday.

Large numbers of people fled to neighbouring Chad. There have been   attempts to evacuate the injured to the hospital of Adré in Chad, but this was not possible due to the dire security situation, a source reported.

The attackers used all kinds of weapons, he said. “All camps for the displaced and a large number of houses in the neighbourhoods of the city burned to ashes.”

He called on the governor of Darfur, Minni Minawi, to “urgently intervene and protect the residents of El Geneina, help treat the injured, and provide them with aid, as most of the people are now living in the open.”

The attackers plundered houses, including the residence of the Sultan of the Masalit tribe, whereby two of his guards were killed.

The West Darfur Revolutionaries Bloc said in a statement yesterday that “this is not a tribal conflict, but an organised genocide targeting the inhabitants of West Darfur. Calling these war crimes and human rights violations in El Geneina a tribal conflict aims to evade the army from its legal and moral responsibility to protect the people.”

The Bloc called on the international community “to urgently intervene, under UN Chapter VII, to protect defenceless civilians the state failed to protect”.

In the last week of April, fighting broke out between army soldiers and paramilitaries of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in El Geneina. More than 190 people were killed. Thousands fled their homes.

Large groups of militant Arab herders, called janjaweed in Darfur, made use of the situation and plundered and torched a large number of houses in the city, most of them belonging to members of the Masalit tribe.

Joint Darfur force

Governor Minawi tweeted this morning that leaders of the rebel movements that signed the 2020 Juba Peace Agreement (JPA) agreed to form a joint protection force for Darfur.

The joint force will be established under the auspices of the governor of Darfur. Operating under a joint command, they will be tasked with protecting civilians, public property, and international humanitarian organisations, Minawi stated.

Last year, a new joint peacekeeping force was set up in the conflict-ridden region, in line with the JPA, with the aim of protecting civilians and uniting the various rebel movements and government forces.

To the frustrations of many however, the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and the RSF have been slow to join.

Chad

In eastern Chad, authorities continue to set up tents for the tens of thousands of new refugees who fled the war between the army and the RSF that erupted a month ago.

Refugees from the Gaga camp in eastern Chad told Radio Dabanga that the authorities have completed a large number of tents to house the new refugees.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported on Friday that about 60,000 Darfuri have arrived in Chad to escape the ongoing war, 67 per cent of whom are of school age.