The United Nations warned of possible crimes against humanity in Sudan’s Darfur region, which has been riven by conflict since 2003 and is now the scene of continuous attacks against civilians based on their ethnicity.
Fighting between the Arab Rizeigat and Masalit tribes has flared for decades, especially in West Darfur’s state capital of Geneina, where Sudanese government forces have persistently failed to contain tensions. More than 500 people have been confirmed dead in Darfur since fighting broke out between Sudan’s army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces on April 15.
“There is an emerging pattern of large-scale targeted attacks against civilians based on their ethnic identities, allegedly committed by Arab militias and some armed men in Rapid Support Forces uniform,” Volker Perthes, the U.N.’s special representative for Sudan who was expelled from the country last week, said in a statement. “These reports are deeply worrying and, if verified, could amount to crimes against humanity.”
