SUDAN: More bombs dropped on North Darfur villages
EL FASHER, 11 September 2006 (IRIN) - In an apparent widening of its military offensive against rebels in North Darfur State, the Sudanese military have used Antonov planes to bomb another seven villages in the volatile region, sources in the region say.
"On Saturday, Antonov planes were bombing seven villages south of Tawilla town, focusing on Tabarat and Tina," a local source, who declined to be named, said. "On Sunday, about 45 vehicles carrying government troops moved through Tina."
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees, António Guterres, warned on Friday that the worsening situation in Darfur threatened to spark another round of massive displacement that could destabilise the region.
"Millions of people are already at grave risk," the High Commissioner said. "Hundreds are still dying amid ongoing violence, and thousands are still being forcibly displaced. Urgent international action is needed to put pressure on the parties to the conflict and to convince everyone involved on the ground to let humanitarian agencies safely carry out their work. If things don't improve, we're heading for a major catastrophe."
Meanwhile, hundreds of thousands of people in Darfur have gone without food aid for three consecutive months because fighting and banditry have prevented the UN World Food Programme (WFP) from reaching them, Kenro Oshidari, WFP’s representative in Sudan, warned on Monday.
Oshidari said that insecurity had cut off 355,000 people from food aid in August - all of them in North Darfur. "Most of these people have now gone three entire months without our help. Their situation is even more desperate because we’re in the middle of the ‘hunger season’ - the period right before the harvest - so they have very little chance of finding food elsewhere," Oshidari said.
Large swathes of territory in North Darfur are under the control of the National Redemption Front (NRF), an alliance of rebels who did not sign the 5 May Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA) between the government and the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A), led by Minni Minnawi.
The latest attacks are part of a major Sudanese military offensive against the NRF rebels that started in late August. Although the offensive initially targeted villages north of the state capital El Fasher, last weekend’s attacks extended the campaign to the eastern Jebel Marra mountains, southwest of Tawilla town and about 50 kilometres west of the capital.
The observer said the army was trying to cut off the NRF rebels and prevent them from reaching new supplies. An NRF source confirmed that the group was running short of fuel and ammunition.
Last week, about 50 NRF vehicles moved south into the Tawilla area, allegedly to join forces with Mohamed Adam Abdul el-Salam - better know as Tarada. He is a senior commander of Abdelwahid Mohamed al-Nur’s faction of the SLM/A, an independent rebel group that also refused to sign the DPA. His bases in the eastern Jebel Marra seem to be the target of the new campaign.
Meanwhile, one of the NRF rebel coalition members, the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), is reportedly moving towards the Chadian border, away from the main NRF force. "It seems the NRF is splitting up," a political analyst said.
Although government forces recaptured the minor towns of Sani Hayi and Sibafi over the weekend, it seems that the offensive north of El Fasher has slowed down. Initially, the Sudanese military rapidly gained territory as NRF rebels avoided a direct confrontation. With the loss of Um Sidir town, however, the NRF started to counter-attack, slowing down the advancing government forces.
The offensive started on 28 August when the villages of Abu Sakin, Kulkul, Sayah and Turra, 35 km northwest of El Fasher, were attacked by Antonov planes. Subsequently, Sudanese armed forces took over the area and pushed further northwards, recapturing Um Sidir on 31 August.
The military campaign comes as Khartoum is threatening to eject African Union peacekeepers. The mandate of the AU Mission in Sudan (AMIS) is due to expire on 30 September and the Sudanese government has refused to accept an extension as a transition to a United Nations peacekeeping force in Darfur.
On 31 August, the UN Security Council adopted a resolution calling for a gradual transition from the under-funded and under-equipped AU mission in Darfur, which has been unable to prevent widespread abuses against civilians, to a stronger UN protection force.
But the deployment of the UN force of 17,500 troops and 3,300 civilian police is contingent on consent by the government of Sudan, which has so far rejected calls for a UN force in Darfur.
See related story: SUDAN: Rebel fragmentation hampers Darfur peace
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