Gunmen ‘in Abu Tira uniforms’ terrify displaced in South Darfur

Residents of the Dereig camp for the displaced in Nyala, South Darfur, hid under their beds because of continuous firing in the air by militiamen on Tuesday. A resident told Radio Dabanga that five gunmen in uniforms of the Central Reserve Forces (Abu Tira) entered the eastern part of the camp at about 8pm on Tuesday. They began to fire shots into the air, which scared the residents. Women and children hid under their beds throughout the night. The source said that the displaced suffer greatly from the proliferation of militiamen. “They roam in and around the camp at night. They assault the people, and rob them at gunpoint.” He demanded the local authorities protect the camp residents from the abuses of the “government-backed militias”. File photo: A patch used by Sudan’s Central Reserve Forces (also known as Abu Tira) shows an eagle with spread wings, clutching a red sun, over an Eye of Horus. The Arabic text below the eagle reads, “Central Reserve: The Police in Service of the People.” (Enough Project/Flickr)  Related: Two dead as ‘Abu Tira’ attack displaced group in South Darfur (16 January 2014)Abu Tira abduct Chadian refugees in Central Darfur (15 January 2014)Militiamen ‘in Abu Tira uniforms’ attack North Darfur camp (16 November 2013)