[Previous entry: "Brazilian leader faces taunts as forum pushes for reform"] [Next entry: "U.S. Warns EU Firms to Stay Away from Iran - Diplomats"]

01/28/2005:

"Sudan Bombs Darfur, Forcing Thousands to Flee - UN"

ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - The Sudanese air force bombed a town in western Sudan this week killing or wounding 100 people and forcing thousands to flee, a U.N. spokeswoman said on Friday.

An African Union (AU) source said earlier that Sudanese officials had prevented AU monitors from investigating the death and damage caused by the aerial bombing. The attack violated a shaky cease-fire with rebels which AU observers are monitoring.

U.N. spokeswoman Radhia Achouri quoted the AU as saying Sudan's air force had bombed the town of Shangil Tobaya, near el-Fasher, capital of North Darfur, on Wednesday.

``(The African Union) said there are around 100 casualties. They are not talking about a specific death toll,'' she told Reuters in Cairo by telephone from Khartoum.

United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan was ``deeply disturbed'' by the attack, his spokesman Fred Eckhard said.

``This is the latest in a series of grave cease-fire violations that have resulted in a large number of civilian casualties, the displacement of thousands of people, and severe access restrictions for relief workers,'' Eckhard said.

``The secretary-general calls on the government of Sudan and the rebel movements in Darfur immediately to comply fully with their commitments under the cease-fire agreement and all relevant Security Council resolutions,'' Eckhard said.

There have been close to 100 confirmed cease-fire violations since late last year.
Full Article: nytimes.com/reuters