Arrivals from Jebel Marra in Tur, Central Darfur

For two weeks, aerial bombardments by the Sudanese Air Force have struck Darfur's Jebel Marra each day, in the government's attempt to crush the rebel forces. It has resulted in the flight of tens of thousands of civilians to safe areas around the mountains, as others fled to caves and mountain tops.

Radio Dabanga received an update on the number of arrivals south of Nierteti, in Central Darfur State. 867 families from several villages in western Jebel Marra have fled the air raids and shelling by military forces and arrived in Tur. Sources initially reported that about 700 families had arrived in Tur.

A community leader in Tur told this station that some of the families are hosted at a school and others stayed with residents in their homes.

He described the situation of the displaced families as “very bad”, stressing that they have not been provided with any aid so far. The leader requested the aid organisations to immediately help them.

In Central Darfur, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and partners have prepared a contingency plan to provide assistance for up to 70,000 people.

Unamid stated this week that it attempts to conduct inter-agency assessment missions to Nierteti and surrounding areas in Central Darfur, including Tur, where the influx of newly displaced is increasing.