Focus on Darfur

In 2008, nearly a quarter million civilians fled from violence

Latest news: "Angry Youths Become a Force in Darfur" (NYT, Dec 20)

The conflict in Darfur prevails, driving almost a quarter million civilians from the war-torn region this year, according to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

At a rate of 1,000 a day, more than 230,000 have fled from violence in Darfur in 2008, say UN officials. Since the conflict broke out in 2003, as many as 300,000 people have died and 2.5 million displaced from their homes.

Attacks against aid workers have also been on the rise, with numbers of incidents thus far in 2008 surpassing the total number of attacks in 2007. These include vehicle hijackings, abductions and break-ins.

On top of human toll, the conflict in Darfur has damaged the environment. Deforestation occurs as the displaced gather firewood to cook food for their families.

Violence against refugees in camps

In August, 31 people were killed, including 17 women and children, and at least 65 were wounded by gunfire when Sudanese troops raided one of Darfur’s largest refugee camps in western Sudan, reported the Los Angeles Times.

The attack took place early morning in Kalma, one of Darfur’s oldest, largest and most volatile refugee camps. Kalma houses 90,000 people displaced by the five-year-old civil war that has uprooted more than 2 million people and taken up to 300,000 civilian lives.

According to the LA Times, a six-hour confrontation broke out after 60 government vehicles surrounded the camp. The government claims there were weapon storehouses in the camp. It is unclear as to how the gunfire began. Mud-and-straw huts were razed and hundreds of camp residents reportedly fled into the surrounding desert.

The conflict in the Darfur region of Sudan began in February 2003 when two loosely allied rebel groups, the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army and the Justice and Equality Movement, launched an uprising against the government of Sudan. Displaced by conflict, an estimated 1.8 million people live in camps inside Sudan, with another 250,000 in refugee camps across the border in Chad. More than half of those displaced are under age 18, according to UNICEF, and between 70 and 80 percent of the camp population are women and children.

Learn more about the history of the conflict at Reuters AlertNet.

Read Women’s Commission reports on this region:

Too Little for Too Few: Meeting the Needs of Youth in Darfur
Education in Darfur: A Critical Component of Humanitarian Response
Finding Trees in the Desert: Firewood Collection and Alternatives in Darfur
Education during Humanitarian Emergencies: The Situation of Displaced Children in Youth in Darfur, Sudan

Last updated 02-Jan-09

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The Women's Commission was established in 1989 to address the particular needs of refugee and displaced women and children. The Women's Commission is affiliated with and is legally part of the International Rescue Committee, a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization. It does not receive direct financial support from the IRC.