Thousands flee renewed Jebel Marra shelling

Intensified shelling on areas in Darfur’s Jebel Marra have led to the flight of thousands of civilians, in a dire humanitarian situation, to the mountain tops and to Guldo over the past two weeks.

The Sudanese government forces have stepped-up their shelling of civilian areas with long-range missiles. A listener told Radio Dabanga that people who tried to flee to Kabkabiya in North Darfur were subject to attacks by militiamen, and their property was stolen on Monday.

That morning, militiamen stole goats and donkeys from people at Wadi Karmel near Golo, western Jebel Marra. When Fadila Rahma Kheir Osman protested, they opened fire and injured her.

The listener said that the roads to Jebel Marra have been closed since the start of the government’s military offensive on armed rebels in Jebel Marra in mid-January.

As of 20 March, an estimated 114,584 displaced people from Jebel Marra have reportedly taken refuge in Kabkabiya and Tawila localities, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Sudan reported. However, UN agencies and partners are still unable to verify and assess the needs of newly arrived displaced in most places in Central Darfur.

Guldo

Thousands of people who have fled to Guldo in Central Darfur's Nierteti locality live in a bad humanitarian situation. A villager who fled from Guldo to Nierteti town told Radio Dabanga on Monday that “more than 10,000 people from western Jebel Marra villages are sheltering in Guldo”.

“They live in schools, squares, others in the open and in the shades of trees. Their health condition is very bad.”

He said that the displaced have not received any medical, food, or financial assistance from the state, and lack the money to buy from the market.