UN reports deadly attacks in West Darfur, Sudan
The United Nations Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) today reported that it has received various reports about a series of deadly
attacks in West Darfur over the past week.
A UN spokesman said this weekend, around 1,000 unidentified militants, travelling in motor vehicles and on camels and
horses, reportedly attacked a village and killed eight people and stole livestock.
Meanwhile, Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s Special Representative for Sudan, Jan Pronk, met yesterday with the head of
the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS) now deployed in Darfur to discuss a possible transition to a UN force there.
They agreed on the need for a joint approach and have decided to meet once a week, a spokesman for the world body said.
In a report to the Council released yesterday, Mr. Annan said planning for a transition from AMIS to a UN peacekeeping
operation must take into consideration “the ongoing violence and consistent violation of human rights in the region, the
displacement of more than 3 million people and increasing instability near the border with Chad.”
International efforts in Darfur should aim to “contribute to the protection of civilians at risk with a view to creating
an environment conducive to national reconciliation in a country where human rights are respected and internally
displaced persons and refugees can return home in safety and dignity,” he stressed.