Battle for Darfur town widens with government air strikes
January 25, 2009 (EL FASHER) – Sudanese government aircraft since Friday have repeatedly bombed a town seized by a cadre of JEM rebels on Jan. 15 with the support of defectors from the government-aligned faction of Minni Minnawi.
About 1,000 civilians fled from the fighting, said the spokesperson for the joint UN-AU peacekeeping mission, Noureddine Mezni. The peacekeeping mission warned a week ago that it was gravely concerned for the civilian population in Muhageria and said that continued fighting in the area “could lead to a catastrophic humanitarian situation for the 30,000 residents and displaced civilians there.”
“The entire area is now littered with bodies and terrified civilians fleeing their homes. An unspecified number of children are reported missing following frightful desertion of their bases at nights,” said General Ali Alwafi, a military spokesman for the rebel Justice and Equality Movement.
UN officials confirmed the bombing of the contested town, Muhageria, while rebels said the town was aflame.
A number of villages in the Muhageria area were struck by Antonov planes, Mig-29 fighter planes and on one occasion a helicopter gunship beginning Friday on a pattern of midnight until 5 a.m., said the JEM rebel spokesman.
Alwafi even alleged that victims from east Muhageria had suffered burns possibly caused by chemical weapons, citing bombs that left a “lethal smell.” The suspected use of these weapons was reported to UNAMID peacekeepers to investigate.
Muhageria is located some 50 miles (80 km) east of the capital of South Darfur. According to Alwafi, the villages, towns and camps bombed in the government air offensive include Abdu Daimat, Abu Dangal, Hajara, Umshijaira, Zalat, Sinait, Aweer, Hilat Idda, Shangli Tobye, Aadona, Shiairia and Shahddad IDP camp, while the town of Shiairia was vacated by order of the army.
Government forces are massing around the town, along with allied forces led by Minnawi.
Thought the JEM movement has vowed to fight fiercely to hold the town, a rebel spokesman told Sudan Tribune in an interview last week that the attack was not aimed against the government-aligned former rebel Minnawi, who had held the town until recently, reflecting the delicate and sometimes ambiguous political and security arrangements among the Darfur factions.
Offensive air operations are forbidden in Darfur by the UN Security Council. Responding to the violation of the Security Council resolutions, Paris-based rebel leader Abdel Wahid Al-Nur urged the international community to impose a no-fly zone in Darfur, saying that Khartoum continues to kill the civilians in the war-torn region of western Sudan, where conflict broke out full scale six years ago.
“I urge the world to stop watching the ongoing killing of civilians by this government which since 2003 practices genocide there without mercy and without any consideration to UN resolutions or international condemnations,” said Al-Nur, who leads the Sudan Liberation Army.
The rebel leader condemned the indiscriminate bombardments on civilians in Muhageria and pointed out that the international community should not just continue to issue statements on such a grave issue.
According to Alwafi, displaced camp and UNAMID bases are caught in the “indiscriminate attacks.” The rebel commander claimed that Kalma IDP camp, where 33 civilians were massacred during a government raid last August, according to a UN investigation released last week, is now surrounded by a military patrol threatening to storm the camp.
Alwafi reported “large scale arming of Janjaweed” in the area and called the offensive “pre-indictment bombing of civilians,” referring to the impending indictment of Sudanese President Omer Al-Bashir by the International Criminal Court.
Sudanese government officials have threatened recriminations against civilians, peacekeepers, aid workers or others in the event of an arrest warrant.
(ST)