Fighting continues in western Sudan: Darfur rebels

NAIROBI, Mar 09, 2004 (dpa) — Conflicting reports from government and rebel sources in war-torn western Sudan are leading to confusion about the tense situation there, the BBC reported Tuesday.

According to the Sudanese government, the Darfur region is calm, with 9,000 refugees returning to the area from camps in neighbouring Chad over the past few days, according to the report.

But rebel forces are denying that Darfur is stable, saying they are fighting an Arab militia known as Janjaweed, in addition to the army.

The government claimed several weeks ago that it had quashed the rebellion, which has been raging for more than a year, and that stability has returned to Darfur.

The rebels claimed they killed 400 Sudanese troops over the weekend, a charge the Sudanese government denied, the report added.