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Sudan Â«stages new Darfur air strikesÂ»

18 May 2011 22:36 (UTC +04:00)

Baku â€“ APA. Sudanese government warplanes have staged new air strikes in Darfur, prompting the United Nations to halt flights in the stricken region, UN officials said on Wednesday, APA reports quoting AFP.
The UN mission in Darfur, UNAMID, said in a statement that warplanes on Tuesday hit the village of Sukamir, which is near Kuma, about 100 kilometers (60 miles) north of the main Darfur city of El Fasher.
That air attack came two days after a strike in the south of the conflict-stricken region, where the United Nations says more than 300,000 people have died since an uprising started in 2003.
"The team will attempt to collect information on possible casualties and newly displaced persons," according to the statement, which said UNAMID peacekeepers were trying to get Sukamir.
UN flights to the regions of Shangil Tobaya, Fanga Suk and neighboring regions in North Darfur have been suspended "due to government officials citing security concerns," said the mission.
Meanwhile, restrictions on the movement of aid groups have led to the cancellation of a number of humanitarian missions in South Darfur, the mission added.
Sudanese warplanes on Sunday bombed the town of Labado and the village of Esheraya in southern Darfur, according to the UN. Casualty numbers could not be given as the mission had not been given access to the Labado region.
Ibrahim Gambari, the UNAMID head, expressed concern over the air strikes.
"I call upon all parties to exercise the utmost restraint in the use of lethal force," he said.
Non-government groups and UN agencies operating in south Sudan were told Tuesday by the Sudanese government that they would be limited to a zone of 15 kilometers (10 miles) around the town of Nyala, UNAMID said.
At least 300,000 people have been killed and 1.8 million people fled their homes since the Darfur conflict erupted in 2003 between rebels and the Arab-dominated Khartoum regime, the United Nations says. The government puts the death toll at 10,000.