GENEVA - Up to 12,000 refugees have arrived in Chad since the most recent Sudanese air strikes in West Darfur, and thousands more may be on their way, the UN refugee agency said Sunday.The UN High Commissioner for Refugees said it was scrambling to rush aid to Darfuris who are fleeing in the aftermath of the Sudanese militaryÂ’s bombing Friday of the West Darfur towns of Sirba, Sileia and Abu Suruj. About half of the refugees are in the Chad border city of Koruk and are feeling terrified,Â’ UNHCR spokeswoman Helene Caux said.
| And the other half? |
Most of the refugees so far are men, she said. But the arrivals are telling UNHCR that thousands of women and children are on their wayÂ’ to Chad, she said.
So far, UNHCR officials have been unable to reach all the refugees around Koruk. An equal amount of Darfuris have gathered in the nearby Chad town of Figeira. UNHCR is hoping to move the refugees to different camps the agency runs in Chad, Caux said.
UN officials say the worsening situation in Darfur has been exacerbated by a recent rebel attack on the capital of neighboring Chad. Caux said that refugees are reporting that their villages were attacked by men on horses and camels, a description similar to those provided of earlier incidents involving the janjaweed.
| We've been calling this one. The Sudanese leaders are whipping up Darfur and making war on Chad, both through their proxies, so that the Euros can't put their planned peacekeeping force Darfur as part of their planned mission to help the African Union UNAMID mandate. Sudanese Arabs absolutely don't want the Euros there, and they know that by whipping up the area, killing a bunch of innocents, and in general causing trouble that the Euros will back down. Expect that announcement in a few days. |