An increase in violence in northern Darfur last month has displaced around 50,000 people, many of whom could be short of food and water, a United Nations official said on Saturday.
Gregory Alex, head of the Office for the co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in northern Darfur, said around 24,000 people fled their homes after clashes between government and rebel forces near the areas of Birmaza and Disa.
The others were displaced because of other forms of violence, including tribal fighting, Alex told Reuters in a telephone interview from El Fasher, the capital of the state of North Darfur. "Some of them (villagers) left with what they could carry. We are presuming that whatever resources they took with them are now depleted," Alex said.
"Anybody who leaves home abruptly and moves to the countryside will have all these needs. And the longer they stay, the more problems they have." Rebel groups said last month government forces and allied militias launched a series of heavy ground and air assaults on their positions in northern Darfur. The Sudanese army said soldiers had entered some areas the rebels had mentioned, but that troops were only protecting roads against bandits.
Aid workers said at the time that entire villages had been emptied after residents took shelter in surrounding mountains and open land, cut off from food aid and clinics. Alex and an international aid source said humanitarian access to the areas near Disa and Birmaza was very limited.