01.08.2008 - Source: Médecins Sans Frontières

North Darfur: MSF forced to evacuate its teams from Tawila and Shangil Tobaya after series of assaults on MSF staff ("MSF evacuates teams after series of assaults on staff in North Darfur") [ID 24367]

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09.07.2008 - Source: ReliefWeb

Darfur: 7 members of UNAMID peacekeeping mission killed in ambush by militiamen and 22 injured ("Darfur militia ambush kills 7 peacekeepers"), Autor: Reuters Foundation [ID 23921]

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31.01.2008 - Source: Human Rights Watch

Darfur: Throughout the year 2007, parties on all sides of the conflict committed atrocities against civilians; summary of attacks on civilians, IDPs, troops and humanitarian organisations by government forces and rebel groups within 2007 ("World Report 2008") [ID 22189]

"The proliferation of rebel groups, which clashed with each other as well as with government military and allied forces, not only challenged peace initiatives but also created an increasingly unpredictable situation on the ground for civilians, peacekeepers and humanitarian agencies.

Throughout the year, parties on all sides of the conflict committed atrocities against civilians.

The Sudanese government played a central role in fomenting the chaos, both continuing to carry out direct attacks on civilians and failing to rein in or hold accountable individuals responsible for abuses.

In July the government finally consented to the deployment of a joint African Union-United Nations "hybrid" peacekeeping force for Darfur.

However, throughout the rest of the year progress towards deployment was dogged by Sudanese government obstruction, bureaucratic delays, and the slow pace of military contributions to the force.

The government made no genuine efforts to address the impunity with which abuses have been carried out. [...]

In late 2006 the government renewed bombing, striking areas under rebel control in North Darfur on an almost daily basis.

Government-backed militias also attacked the civilian population throughout Darfur, even in camps for internally displaced persons.

Prior to peace talks in October 2007 there was once again an increase in violence, including major attacks on the towns of Haskanita and Muhajariya.

In May 2006 Sudan Liberation Army (SLA)-Minawi rebel leader Minni Minawi signed the Darfur Peace Agreement with the government and was subsequently appointed Special Assistant to the President, but residents of North Darfur increasingly complain about abuses carried out by his forces.

These abuses - and clashes between rebel groups and SLA-Minawi fighters - caused thousands to flee from the Korma and Tawila areas of North Darfur to displaced persons camps.

Since January 2007 fighting among Arab groups has also left more than 200 people dead and forced thousands more to flee.

More than 250,000 civilians were newly displaced in the first nine months of 2007 alone, bringing the total displaced population in Darfur to more than 2.2 million.

While large scale attacks drive people into IDP camps, ongoing violence keeps them there. The camps themselves are becoming increasingly violent with no guarantee of safety.

Sexual violence in particular continues to be a feature of everyday life for women and girls.

The African Union Mission to Sudan (AMIS) has also come under attack. On September 30, 2007 unidentified forces attacked an African Union base in Haskanita, South Darfur, killing 10 AMIS peacekeepers.

After almost five years of conflict, more than four million people - two thirds of the population of Darfur - depend on humanitarian assistance.

However, humanitarian operations continue to be hampered by insecurity. The UN estimated that in June 2007 one in every six relief convoys that left provincial capitals was attacked, either by Janjaweed, rebels, or bandits.

Twelve humanitarian workers were killed in the first nine months of 2007."

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23.05.2007 - Source: Amnesty International

Darfur: Scores of civilians killed in clashes and attacks on villages in 2006 ("Annual Report 2007") [ID 20073]

"

A number of armed groups which opposed the DPA regrouped as the National Redemption Front in June. After a massive troop build-up in Darfur in August, the government launched an offensive against areas controlled by those groups in North Darfur and Jebel Marra. Government aircraft indiscriminately or directly bombed civilians. Forces of the SLA Minawi faction also attacked civilians. In November, Janjawid killings and forcible displacements of civilians in villages near areas controlled by armed opposition groups increased. Members of armed opposition groups were responsible for attacking humanitarian convoys, abducting aid workers, and reportedly killing and torturing civilians.

• In July more than 72 people, including some 11 primary school pupils, were killed during attacks by the SLA Minawi faction, at the time allied with the government, on villages apparently under SLA control in North Darfur. AMIS was accused of failing to answer pleas for help.

• The Gereida region was insecure throughout 2006, with scores of villages destroyed in attacks by Janjawid or other armed groups. Some 80,000 people fled the camp for Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) in Gereida after fighting between forces of the SLA Minawi faction and the Justice and Equality Movement in October.

• In November at least 50 civilians were killed, including 21 children under 10, when Janjawid attacked eight villages and an IDP camp in Jebel Moon in West Darfur. AMIS forces arrived the day after the attack. The Governor of West Darfur promised an inquiry but no findings had been made public by the end of 2006."

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