Khartoum accuses Darfur rebels of killing two police in truce breach

KHARTOUM, Sept 26 (AFP) — Darfur rebels have killed two policemen at a displaced persons’ camp in Sudan’s troubled western province, violating a ceasefire agreement, the interior ministry charged Sunday.

Rebels entered the Kalma camp in South Darfur state on Sunday, shot dead two officers and wounded an unspecified number of others before fleeing, the ministry said in a statement.

“This attack reflects irresponsibility and disrespect by the rebels for the Ndjamena ceasefire agreement and other commitments,” said the statement.

The ministry charged that rebels were bent on creating insecurity in the region, claiming that 68 police stations had so far been attacked and 408 policemen killed, “a matter which denied the people security and safety and led to the ensuing complications of insecurity.”

The ministry said it was continuing efforts to meet the terms of a United Nations Security Council resolution passed in August calling for Khartoum to bring peace to the region, adding that so far over 10,000 police had been sent to Darfur.

The United Nations has called Darfur the world’s worst current humanitarian crisis, and the United States and Germany have described the brutal campaign waged by state-sponsored Arab militias in Darfur as “genocide.”

The bloodshed began in February 2003 when rebels rose up against Khartoum to demand an end to the marginalisation of their region — mainly peopled by non-Arab minorities and one of the poorest in Sudan.

The Sudanese government’s response to the uprising was to give Arab militias known as the Janjaweed a free rein to crack down on the rebels and their suspected supporters.

The Janjaweed are accused of murder, rape and torture and using women as sex slaves.