Minawi accuses RSF of massacre, burning 20 villages in North Darfur
November 2, 2024 (EL FASHER)– The governor of Darfur and leader of the Sudan Liberation Movement, Minni Arko Minawi, accused the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) of carrying out a massacre in at least one town and burning 20 villages in North Darfur state.
Since mid-October, the RSF and allied militias have been conducting reprisal attacks against villages inhabited by the Zaghawa ethnic group in the Kutum locality of North Darfur. More than 45 villages have been burned, displacing residents to Chad.
Community leaders from North Darfur told Sudan Tribune on Saturday that the preliminary death toll from the attack on the Bireidik area in Kutum locality has reached 12, with four injured and four others kidnapped.
They indicated that the RSF attacked villages of the African Zaghawa ethnicity under the pretext that they support the joint force engaged in fierce battles against the RSF in North Darfur’s capital and other areas in the region.
“What happened in the Bireidik area in North Darfur state is a crime added to the record of crimes against humanity, no less heinous than the massacres of Wad al-Noura and al-Sariha in Al Jazirah state,” Minawi said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Minawi explained that the town’s residents are subjected to fierce attacks by militias with clear ethnic motives. He revealed that the entire town had been overrun, in addition to the burning of more than 20 other villages and the looting of citizens’ property.
“It seems that Plan (B) has become clear to everyone, as mentioned by the leader of the Al-Dgalo militia, which is to transfer the war to Darfur, which increases killing and looting on an ethnic basis. We must raise our voices and convey this tragedy to the world,” he added.
Minawi stressed that the RSF would not be allowed to engage in what he described as criminal behaviour against innocent citizens. “The world must see what is happening. There is no mercy or pity for this militia that burns villages and areas and kills on an ethnic basis. Let us all stand against this injustice and demand justice,” he added.
On Friday, eyewitnesses told Al Jazeera Net that the RSF burned about 45 villages during the past two weeks, including four villages set on fire last Thursday. This has led to the flight of about 20,000 people to neighbouring Chad.
Witnesses reported that the attacks targeted villages inhabited by the Zaghawa ethnic group, considered to be among the tribes supporting the joint force in Darfur.
Adam Mezza, a member of the Zaghawa Tribal Shura Council, said that more than 20,000 people have fled from the northeastern areas of Kutum to the localities of Al-Tina, Ambro, and Karnoi, which border Chad.
The RSF burned dozens of villages, including Bireidik, Anka, Amrai, Ba’ashim, Hallaf, Bir Mezza, Baqr, Mati, Abu Ashwa, and Jayu Jiya.