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Darfur still volatile
The security situation in Darfur remains highly unstable. Since armed confrontations and related violence escalated in mid-September, all three states making up the Darfur region have been significantly affected.
Over the past two weeks, armed clashes have occurred near Al Geneina (Western Darfur) and Gereida (Southern Darfur), where the situation remains precarious. ICRC operations in the west of Western Darfur remain suspended in the wake of recent security incidents that have targeted the organization and continue making it difficult for its staff to go about their work in safety. Two vehicles belonging to the ICRC which were stolen by combatants north of Seleia, in Western Darfur, have yet to be recovered (see previous Bulletins - 35 and 36 - for more details).
The ICRC continues to cover some 60% of Western Darfur's territory from its office in Zalengei. Nevertheless, the civilian population in the areas covered by the Al Geneina office along the border with Chad are in need of humanitarian aid and it is therefore essential for the ICRC to resume its work there soon. These areas are also the scene of sporadic armed clashes and growing banditry, which are further weakening security and hampering the ICRC's ability to carry out its humanitarian mandate.
The ICRC has had a lengthy series of discussions with all parties concerned about the problem of its property being stolen by combatants. More importantly, the organization has insisted on real security guarantees from all the relevant armed groups in Western Darfur. This is the only way that the ICRC can resume its humanitarian work.
Red Crescent staff member killed in Abu Shok camp
The ICRC was deeply saddened by the killing of a staff member of the Sudanese Red Crescent in Abu Shok camp for internally displaced people, in the outskirts of El Fasher, the capital of Northern Darfur. On 2 December, the staff member, who worked as a driver in support of the Red Crescent tracing activities in the region, was shot at close range and died soon afterwards in El Fasher hospital.
The incident is under investigation by the local police and is believed to have occurred in a bid to steal the Red Crescent vehicle.
Field surgical team in Zalingei
On 9 November the ICRC's field surgical team began work in Zalingei (Western Darfur) to help the local health authorities at the hospital there treat an influx of people wounded during recent clashes in the area. Since it was set up in April 2005, the team has been deployed 25 times throughout Darfur and carried out over 300 operations. Made up of a surgeon, an anaesthetist, a surgical nurse and a ward nurse, the team treats wounded people in Darfur in situations where no trained surgeons are available or where existing facilities are struggling to meet the needs.
Situation in Gereida slowly improving
The security situation is slowly returning to normal in Gereida town (Southern Darfur) after several weeks of tension resulting from a series of violent clashes that caused the displacement of some 15,000 people in the state. Despite the improvement, the need for humanitarian aid nevertheless continues to grow and the ICRC is grappling with the challenges thrown up by its endeavour to assist this sudden and unexpected influx of people.
The violence has directly affected over 20 villages, uprooting residents and leaving them with little option but to flee towards the relative safety of Gereida. The ICRC registered all the new arrivals, assessed their immediate needs and immediately commenced distribution of essential items such as tarpaulins, jerrycans, soap and blankets. Food stocks are being supplemented from the ICRC warehouses in Nyala, Southern Darfur's capital, and are now being distributed. Work is under way to meet water requirements while the capacity of Gereida's existing health-care clinics - supported by the British and Australian Red Cross Societies - will also be boosted to provide an estimated 250 extra consultations a day. The ICRC's mobile field surgical team was sent to the town to support the local health authorities. At the time of writing it had carried out over 70 operations on wounded patients. Working with the local authorities, the ICRC has identified suitable sites for a new camp for the displaced families. Setting up a camp from scratch is a task the ICRC has tackled on many occasions since the start of the Darfur crisis.
Despite improved security in the town itself, there remains an acute need for humanitarian aid, and this is posing a huge challenge to the ICRC. Displaced families are still arriving and numbers are expected to swell to 20,000 newly-arrived persons. The internally displaced population in Gereida would then number approximately 65,000 people, more than three times the resident population.
Cross-border family reunification
On 10 December, three Sudanese children started their trip home to be reunited with their parents after several months in the refugee camp in Touloum, Chad. The two boys and a girl, who fled across the border from Sudan in search of refuge, were brought by road from Touloum to Al Geneina, in Western Darfur. An ICRC aircraft will bring them home to Kabkabiya, Northern Darfur later this week.
War surgery seminar
In conjunction with the Sudan Medical Association, the Sudanese Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons and the ICRC, Sudan's federal Ministry of Health held a war surgery seminar from the 26 to 28 November. Over 135 surgeons and other doctors from across the country - including representatives of several public hospitals in Darfur - took part. The event focused on enhancing knowledge of how best to deal with a wide variety of medical problems that typically arise in wartime, from methods of treating common war wounds to coping with mass casualties. In addition, an issue close to the participants' hearts - protecting medical personnel and facilities during conflict - was covered in detail. Rules requiring medical staff and facilities to be spared are an essential part of international humanitarian law (which governs the conduct of hostilities) and central to the ICRC's mandate.
ICRC participants included Dr Chris Giannou, head of its war-surgery unit, who acted as discussion facilitator. Many Sudanese experts also took the floor to ensure a thorough review of knowledge and experience specific to the context of Sudan.
Humanitarian law seminars for police and security forces
In the past two weeks the ICRC has conducted two courses, one for Sudanese police forces and one for national security officials. The events are part of the long-term endeavour to fully incorporate international humanitarian law into these bodies' training and practice. A similar programme is under way with the Sudanese Armed Forces and political authorities as part of the ICRC's mandate to help the States party to the Geneva Conventions ensure compliance with humanitarian law. Taking a peer-to-peer approach, these programmes typically endeavour to "train the trainers" from various State authorities and from academic circles as a means of facilitating the law's incorporation into national legislation and training curriculums.
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