‘We are lucky today’: West Darfur braces for more outbreaks of fighting

MAny towns and villages to the north and east of El Jinina, the capital of West Darfur in Sudan, are no-go areas. Violence erupted here last week and went on 200 people died The tension has subsided but the tension is clear.

The area around Jebel Moon, 70 km from El Jinina, is surrounded and sealed by Arab militias tied to the Rapid Support Force (RSF) of Mohamed Hamdan Dagallo, AK Hemedati, the second most powerful man. . Sudan,

These armed groups are accused of carrying out the massacre and atrocities here last week. Darfur in the last two years. Locals say people living in the villages here are unable to go without a military convoy for medical treatment, shopping or meeting family, which is sporadic.

Hawa Adam, 40, a mother of nine, is ill and had to go to a gynecologist in El Jinina, as there is no doctor in her area clinic. He had to wait 21 days to find a seat in the car in the convoy. When she arrived in the city, she was trapped in the house after last week’s fight worrying for her nine children.

On her way back, she says, “I can stay here for another 21 days and wait for a safe way back home.” “When I was 15, I once lived on this road with my young brothers. But Jinina had gone. We left very early in the morning and reached there after sunset. That was before the war, now even driving is impossible. ,

He is interrupted by the driver, who yells at him to raise the window as they approach a group of 15 armed Arab men on the road ahead. The driver, also from his Myseria Jebel community, whispers to the passengers: “I also saw six other armed men hiding behind the bush. They looked like they wanted to attack, but we are lucky today.

After passing the danger, the travelers all begin to discuss the people they knew who were killed in the area, the Misriya belonging to the Jebel community.

The area is inhabited by non-Arab communities, mostly farmers, who have experienced decades of persecution from Khartoum, pitting them against neighboring nomadic peoples and marginalizing them politically and economically. It culminated in 2003 with the murderous campaign of ousted President Omar al-Bashir against rebel groups. Justice and Equality Movement And this Sudanese Liberation ArmyWhat the US called a “genocide”.

The new wave of violence in Darfur between nomadic Arab fighters, backed and armed by the RSF, and farmers under pressure on water and land, exacerbated by the climate crisis. The situation was aggravated by the failure of the transitional authorities to act thoroughly following the 2020 withdrawal of UN and African Union peacekeeping forces from the region. A peace deal was signed before the withdrawal, but only by five rebel groups.

Observers have predicted more violence and conflict in West Darfur. recently report good The US Institute of Peace pointed to a lack of control over Arab militias, including Janzweed, who were Massive RSF . includedand said they were motivated by an Arab supremacist agenda in addition to the pursuit of good pastures and water.

But guns are cheap and available in Darfur. The Jebel Moon youth have formed their own army unit, called al-Shaush or al-Aghda. A small band carrying Kalashnikov recently met with Minnie Minnawi, the governor of Darfur. He wore a desert turban and a mix of military uniform with traditional Sudanese clothing. He accused the RSF of attacking his men and vowed to fight back.

However, Arab militias are far more advanced militarily. “The idea of ​​forming this army is only to protect our people here, who get no protection from the government in case of any Janjaweed attacks,” says Abdulatif Ali, a civilian member of the group, which has a representation of women. Unarmed branch. and young people.

Thousands have fled their villages, some moving to the mountains, some to the capital of Chad and Darfur. Khadoja Gamar, 25, who has five children, told the Guardian that their village of Aroshiri was burnt to ashes in March. Many people fled to Chad, but its water pumps still work so Gummer and other villagers come to the donkey to get water despite the dangers.

Gummer says she leaves her children hidden in the mountains when she travels: “We need protection. If we were here again, perhaps the Arabs could come to kill us all. They took my mobile phone too, and the things they can’t take, they just burn up. ,

In Adikong, once a busy commercial city on the Chadian border, there have been three attacks by Janjaweed this year. Last March, all of its 37,000 people were deported to Chad.

Last week, a couple returned to a deserted and silent city to check on their onion crop. He told the Guardian that he had left his children in Chad and had come to see his farm. “We lost everything, we only had to run with our kids. Our house was burnt down when the Arabs robbed and robbed whatever they found,” says 38-year-old Doula Ali.

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