Thursday, March 28, 2024

Sudan Tribune

Plural news and views on Sudan

UN: Darfur refugees say Janjaweed now working as camp guards

LONDON, Sept 21 (AFP) — Janjaweed militiamen, who have been accused of committing atrocities in Sudan’s Darfur region, are now appearing as guards at refugee camps according refugees, a senior UN official said.

Sudanese_police_secure_Abu_Shouk_camp.jpgUN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour said that during a visit to North Darfur that refugees told her that among the police guarding their camps were former members of the Janjaweed militia that forced them to flee their homes.

“They claim to see former Janjaweeds … recycled into the police,” she told BBC radio. “There is widespread belief they are being protected by their very oppressors.”

An estimated 50,000 people have died and 1.4 million been displaced in Darfur, where UN officials say pro-government Janjaweed militias have carried out a scorched-earth campaign of ethnic cleansing against non-Arab minorities.

Arbour also accused the Sudanese government of failing to do enough to protect refugees.

“There is a total sense of impunity,” she said.

The UN Security Council passed a resolution on Saturday calling for a UN investigation in charges of human rights violations and genocide in Darfur, and warned Sudan of possible sanctions against its oil industry unless it makes good on its promise to protect the region’s population.

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