US: Death toll in Darfur tribal clashes rises to 65

KHARTOUM, Sudan

The death toll and the number of those injured from tribal clashes in West Darfur continues to rise, the UN peace keeping mission in the troubled region said Friday.

“The African Union – United Nations Hybrid Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) is deeply concerned by reports of intercommunal violence in West Darfur that left 65 people dead and approximately 54 injured, displaced thousands of civilian population, destroyed shelters and burnt villages” the mission said in statement emailed to Anadolu Agency.

It urged the Sudanese transitional government to exerted greater efforts to contain the conflicts and bring perpetrators to justice.

“While the Mission acknowledges the efforts exerted by the Government to contain the situation, it further calls upon the relevant government authorities to maximize their efforts to establish a protective environment and restore peace and order in and around the greater El Geneina community. It is a matter of priority to engender an environment which is conducive to the resumption of uninterrupted humanitarian operations, given the dire needs of the affected population for basic services,” the statement read.

It also noted the mission evacuated its personnel and NGO staff from the area.

Eighteen people were killed in a plane crash in Elgenena on Thursday. The plane went down moments after it departed from the city’s airport carrying senior army officials and victims of the clashes.

The government sent military reinforcements to the area, while the Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok headed a high level delegation to the area Thursday.