New influx of IDPs still arriving at North Darfur camps

February 11, 2009 (ELFASHER) –Over 3,000 newly displaced people have arrived in Zam Zam camp, one of the largest gathering points for displaced Darfur civilians, the UNAMID peacekeeping operation reports.

Trucks bearing residents of Muhajeriya are arriving since the government re-took the town from Justice and Equality Movement rebels last week. But most of those arriving by donkey hail from Abu Dangal, 30 km west of Shearia in South Darfur, or from other small villages in the area of the fighting.

On Tuesday, the United Nation Joint Logistics Centre released and dispatched emergency non-food items like blankets and sleeping mats to 288 newly arrived households consisting of 900 people. Another batch had already been released and distributed on February 7 to 1723 new displaced people.

Another 50 households fleeing the recent fighting in the area of Wada’ah arrived in Dar Alsalam camp on February 10, according to UNAMID.

Last week, the UN’s humanitarian coordinator for Darfur said “At least 30,000 people have fled from their homes in the Muhajaria and Shearia localities of South Darfur over the past days because of hostilities in the region.”

There are approximately 2.5 million Darfuris who have fled to other parts of Darfur and at least 290,000 more refugees of the conflict are encamped in Chad.

(ST)