Sudan-An Approaching Storm

 

SUDAN

The Approaching Storm

Sudanese troops helped restore calm in the restive region of Darfur Tuesday following three days of interethnic violence that killed more than 150 people and displaced tens of thousands, Agence France-Presse reported.

Violence erupted over the weekend between Arab nomads and the non-Arab Massalit ethnic group in West Darfur, killing at least 100 people and forcing 50,000 to be displaced.

Separately, members of the Fallata ethnic group and the Arab Rizeigat tribe clashed Monday in South Darfur, killing at least 55 people and wounding 37.

The latest violence comes three weeks after the United Nations and African Union peacekeeping mission, UNAMID, ended its 13 years of operations in Darfur. UNAMID will withdraw its 8,000 peacekeepers within six months.

Many Darfuris protested the departure, citing fears of renewed violence, despite a peace agreement between the government and rebel groups in the region.

In October, Sudan’s transitional government and multiple rebel forces signed a peace deal to end the conflict in Darfur.

The conflict began in 2003, when former President Omar al-Bashir’s government forces launched a bloody campaign against rebels in the region.

Some 300,000 people died and about 2.5 million were displaced, according to the UN.