UNAMID regrets gov't forces' entry into camp in Darfur without coordination

Source: Xinhua| 2017-11-05 04:45:44|Editor: Mu Xuequan
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KHARTOUM, Nov. 4 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) on Saturday regretted entry of Sudanese government forces into a camp for internally displaced persons (IDP) without coordination with the mission.

"On Nov. 2, armed government forces entered Kalma IDP camp, South Darfur, in a show of force to conduct a weapons collection campaign in the state," said UNAMID in a statement Saturday.

"The UNAMID regrets the entry ... was not coordinated with the mission to avoid any potential tension and violence," said UNAMID Joint Special Representative, Jeremiah Mamabolo, in the statement.

UNAMID peacekeepers on the ground during the incident reported that more than 100 government military vehicles, including trucks with mounted weapons and armored personnel carriers, entered parts of the camp.

The mission called on the government and IDPs to work with UNAMID in a collaborative way in order to advance the weapons collection campaign.

Last Sept. 22, at least three IDPs were killed and 26 others injured in clashes between government forces and IDPs who protested in Kalma IDP camp in rejection to a visit by Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir.

The Sudanese authorities accused the majority of Kalma IDPs of being loyal to the Sudan Liberation Movement led by Abdul-Wahid Mohamed al Nur, a major armed rebel group in Darfur which refuses to sign a peace deal with the Khartoum government.

The Kalma camp was established in February 2004 in Bileil, some 15 km east of Nyala, the capital city of South Darfur State.

According to the UN World Food Programme and the International Organization for Migration, Kalma, which accommodates 126,200 IDPs, is the biggest IDP camp in Darfur.

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