Fresh Attacks in Darfur by Janjaweed and Sudanese Gov.

The Sudanese government along with Janjaweed carried fresh attacks in Darfur resulting in many civilian casualties, says the African Union peacekeeping troops. Aljazeera reports from Darfur:

The AU Mission in Sudan (AUMIS) reported a "heavy toll on the civilian population" after aerial bombardments, which suggests government forces' involvement, and ground attacks were carried out by Arab militia, in Birmaza in northern Darfur, on Wednesday and Thursday.

Andrew Simmons, Aljazeera's correpsondent in Dafur, reported that AU sources had said up to 70 civilians were killed in the attacks, but that the Sudanese government had not yet confirmed this figure.

The African troops stationed in Darfur are unable to stop the attack, protect civilians or disarm the militias. Earlier, Sudan agreed in principal to let a UN force join the African Union troops, but there were conflicting statements from the UN and the Sudanese government of the extent and mandate of the UN forces.

Technocrati Tags: Conflict, Africa