Woman raped by pro-government militia

A woman was raped by a group of pro-government militia on Tuesday near the Gereida camp for displaced people. The woman was on her way to collect firewood together with two others when the armed men attacked the group. They grabbed the woman and raped her but her companions managed to escape, said a witness to Radio Dabanga. The incident was reported to police who said they did not have enough fuel to hunt down the militants, according to the witness. She urged local authorities and the UN/African Union Mission in Darfur to work harder to protect vulnerable displaced people from further attacks by armed groups. Gender-based violence Systematic rape of women and girls is regularly reported to Radio Dabanga from Darfuri camps. Some witnesses say that almost every woman living in the camps has been raped or involved in gender-based violence. They say the situation has now become so bad that many women are resigned to rape as a way of life. Men are unwilling to accompany them on daily errands out of fear that they will be killed if they try to defend them.