UN Chief Calls For Immediate End To Violence In West Darfur - Spokesperson

UN Chief Calls for Immediate End to Violence in West Darfur - Spokesperson

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed deep concern about inter-communal clashes in West Darfur that have resulted in more than 200 people being killed and scores more injured, and called for an immediate end to the violence, United Nations deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq said on Monday

UNITED NATIONS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 25th April, 2022) UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed deep concern about inter-communal clashes in West Darfur that have resulted in more than 200 people being killed and scores more injured, and called for an immediate end to the violence, United Nations deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq said on Monday.

"The Secretary-General extends his deepest condolences to the families of those killed and wishes a speedy recovery to those injured," Haq said. "The Secretary-General deplores the killings of civilians in the Kreinik locality, West Darfur, as well as the attacks on health facilities on 24 April. He calls for an immediate end to violence."

The Coordinating Committee for Refugees and Displaced People said the existing conflict between Masalit farmers and Arab nomads jostling for grazing space and water led to the violence that erupted on Friday in Kreinik in West Darfur. By Monday, the violence had spread to Al Geneina, the capital of West Darfur.

Guterres emphasized that the government of Sudan is accountable for ensuring that civilians in Darfur are protected, Haq said.

However, Guterres praised the Sudanese authorities for attempting to mitigate the situation by evacuating injured civilians but called for quick deployment of the joint security-keeping forces as proscribed by the Juba Peace Agreement, Haq also said.

Guterres also appealed to Sudanese authorities to allow unrestricted humanitarian access while calling for an independent investigation of this and other instances of inter-communal violence so that those liable for are held to account, Haq added.