Janjaweed militias reportedly relocated in southern Sudan

RUMBEK, Southern Sudan Oct 12, 2004 (Sudan Radio Service) — Pro-government Arab militia, commonly known as Janjawid, may be relocating to parts of Upper Nile, in southern Sudan.

Soldiers in a miltary unit calling themselves variously the Border Intelligence Division, Second Reconnaisance Brigade, or the Quick and the Horrible, also believed to form part of the Janjaweed militia, walk around the weekly animal market in Mistiria in North Darfur, Sudan, Tuesday, Oct. 5, 2004. AP.

An estimated 4 hundred Janjawid are now reportedly around Fangak, while others are reported to be taking shelter in areas around Renk, Malakal and Tunja.

Sources say they suspect the Janjawid came to the south on board 18 military barges which recently carried returnees from Khartoum and Kosti to Bor and Juba in September.

An SPLM official in Rumbek, Deng Mung, says the authorities and local residents are uneasy about the presence of Janjawid in their areas.

Other sources from western Equatoria also claim there is an unknown number of armed people in that area. In Ezo, Ibba, Source Yubu and Tombura, armed men are reportedly loitering on horseback with their livestock.

Governor of Equatoria Samuel Abujohn and Father Joseph Migidi of Source Yubu Parish have confirmed the presence of irregular forces in the area.

Some people from the area say they also suspect the strangers to have tanks and other large military hardware.

Officials at the Sudan embassy in Nairobi declined to comment on these claims.

Material from the BBC Monitoring Service