UN warns of new clashes in Darfur, says seven people killed

KHARTOUM, Sudan, Apr 20, 2005 (AP) — Clashes between rebels and Arab militiamen in Darfur killed seven people over the past week, the U.N. said Wednesday, warning of possible new fighting as militias move to cut off rebel positions.

Sudan Liberation Army rebels speed through the desert east of El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state November 8, 2004. (Reuters) .

Militiamen have increased harrassment of non-Arab civilians in the western part of the conflict-torn region, according to villagers there, with four women reporting rapes in the Sisi region, said Radhia Achouri, spokeswoman for the U.N. special representative to Darfur.

On Monday, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan said in a monthly report on Darfur that despite numerous cease-fire agreements, the Sudanese government, its Janjaweed militia allies and the rebel groups they are fighting are increasing military actions in the region.

An estimated 180,000 people have died in the conflict since February 2003, when two non-Arab rebel groups took up arms against the Arab-dominated government to win more political and economic rights for Darfur’s African tribes. Sudan is accused of backing Janjaweed fighters who are blamed for rapes and killings against non-Arab civilians.

Rebels from the Sudan Liberation Army clashed with militiamen a number of times over the past week, including a battle in the Abdul Bagir region of northern Darfur that killed seven people and wounded another, Achouri told reporters in Khartoum.

She warned of possible new violence in South Darfur, where she said Arab militiamen are reportedly moving near the town of Neitega in an attempt to cut off rebel links in the region, and there is “likely to be a reaction” from rebel group.

Last week, SLA fighters detained a group of Sudanese Health Ministry officials conducting polio vaccinations and took their vehicles, she said.

The fighting comes as Khartoum is under increased international pressure to end the fighting in Darfur. The U.N. Security Council has demanded war crimes suspects be handed over for trial before the International Criminal Court, a demand Sudan has rejected.

At the U.N. Human Rights Commission in Geneva, European countries and the U.S. were trying Wednesday to win African support for a sharply worded resolution condemning the Sudanese government for indiscriminate attacks on civilians in the Darfur region, diplomats said.

Najeeb Al-Khair, a state Minister at Sudan ‘s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, denounced the E.U. resolution, saying it “does not come up with any effective contribution for the solution of the problem in Darfur, but rather lead to considerable complication of the situation.”