Armed group rapes student

Witnesses accuse that the crime has an ethnic dimensionA group of unidentified armed men reportedly raped a student from the region of Azban in Tawaisha, North Darfur on Wednesday.Witnesses told Radio Dabanga that the crime was committed on ethnic lines. The group allegedly demanded other women belonging to the same ethnicity to leave the village immediately after they had raped the student.A witness said that a militia group on board two cars as well as horse and camel-backs attacked the group of women who were gathering harvests from their farms. Subsequently, they raped the 17-year-old student who was helping her mother in the farm.He also stated the militia group beat other women who were unable to flee and demanded that the women leave the village immediately, threatening to kill them if they return to gather harvests again.The witness added that one of the sheikhs from the village intervened and welcomed the women in his house. He also appealed to the authorities of North Darfur and the commissioner of Tawaisha county to protect civilians and put an end to the prevalent violations committed by local militias which target civilians on ethnic basis in the region.