Sudan will deploy security forces in conflict-hit Darfur to “protect citizens and the farming season” after a series of attacks, the prime minister has said.
Abdalla Hamdok’s announcement Sunday came two days after gunmen in the region killed at least 20 civilians, including children, when they returned to their fields for the first time in years, the latest in a series of violent incidents.
The impoverished western region has experienced years of conflict since an uprising by an ethnic minority led the government to launch a scorched earth campaign that killed 300,000 people and displaced 2.5 million.
“A joint security force will be deployed in all five states in the Darfur region to protect citizens during the agricultural season,” Hamdok’s office said in a statement after meeting with a delegation of women from the region.
The force will include military and police forces, he said.
Darfur has been embroiled in deadly conflict since 2003, when black ethnic minority tribes took up arms against the forces of then-ruler Omar al-Bashir, accusing his government of marginalizing the region.
Al-Bashir, who was fired last year, is wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes and genocide charges related to Darfur, which he denies.
In September last year a transitional government was sworn in to share power between civilians and the military.
Violence in Darfur has lessened since al-Bashir was ousted by the army amid massive protests against his government last year, with a preliminary peace agreement signed in January between the government and a coalition of nine rebel groups, including factions. region of.
Farmers displaced in the conflict have since started to return to their land under a government-sponsored agreement reached two months ago, in time for the July-November planting season.
But the bloodshed has continued, particularly for land rights, according to expert Adam Mohammad.
“The land issue is one of the causes of the conflict,” he said.
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