Since 2003, the genocidal conflict in Darfur has devastated millions of non-combatant civilians and resulted in the death of at least 200,000 people. As of 2010, Sudan continues to direct its troops and proxy Janjaweed militias to systematically destroy the livelihoods of Darfuris by bombing and burning villages, looting economic resources, and murdering, raping, and torturing non-combatant civilians.
A proliferation of rebel groups in Darfur is also complicit in the recruitment of child soldiers and the commission of other acts of violence against civilians.
The Darfur conflict has displaced over 2.7 million people within Sudan, with an additional 250,000 crossing the border into Chad. The actions of the Sudanese government, particularly the expulsion of 13 international aid groups in March 2009, continue to affect those who have sought safety in towns and displaced person camps.
Beginning in early 2009, incidents of inter-tribal violence across South Sudan have strained relations between North and South Sudan. The attacks, which increasingly target civilians, have led members of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement, the governing party of South Sudan, to accuse the Khartoum government of delivering arms to the South. As the international community works to ensure that the Comprehensive Peace Agreement of 2005 is fully implemented, these attacks cast a pall over the continued stability of Sudan.
Currently, Sudan features two large peacekeeping missions, UNAMID, tasked with bringing peace and protecting civilians in Sudan’s western Darfur region and UNMIS, designated to ensure the implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement and the demobilization of former combatants in South Sudan.
Source: Genocide Intervention Network
Photo credits: David Seide