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- Sudan rejected an Intergovernmental Authority on Development quartet idea to deploy a stand-by force for civilian protection.
- Misterei, a small town, is reported to have been razed after mass killings of civilians.
- On 28 May, 28 members of the Massalit ethnic group were killed.
The Sudanese government has shot down the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) quartet idea to convene a standby army in the country for the protection of civilians.
The Kenyan-led quartet, which includes South Sudan, Ethiopia and Djibouti as members, met in Addis Ababa on Monday to discuss a peace initiative for the three-month-old conflict in Sudan.
The Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) had initially accepted the meeting invitation but didn't attend.
In its absence, issues concerning Sudan were discussed at the meeting.
One of the key issues under discussion was the protection of civilians from the SAF and its rival, the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
To allow more humanitarian aid to reach war-torn communities, the quartet agreed that there was a need for an army to ringfence civilian communities.
But on Tuesday, Sudan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement issued in Arabic that it didn't want any foreign force operating in the country.
"The government of Sudan affirms its refusal to engage foreign forces in the country," it said in the statement.
More than 2.8 million people have been displaced by the war, including more than 2.2 million people who are still in the country, and about 615 000 have crossed the border into neighbouring countries, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
Destruction
According to a new Human Rights Watch (HRW) report, RSF and affiliated Arab militias slaughtered at least 28 members of the Massalit ethnic group on 28 May in West Darfur. Dozens of civilians were killed and injured.
Misterei, a small town, is reported to have been razed after mass killings of civilians.
Jean-Baptiste Gallopin, senior HRW crisis and conflict researcher, said the destruction of Massalit people was another clear indicator that the international community should do more to bring the warring parties to the negotiation table.
"The mass killings of civilians and total destruction of the town of Misterei demonstrate the need for a stronger international response to the widening conflict," he said.
HRW interviewed 37 refugees from other areas of West Darfur, such as El Geneina and the villages of Tendelti, Adikong and Molle. They spoke of "deliberate fire" used to destroy the city.
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The RSF allegedly shot at civilians without reason.
"The Rapid Support Forces and Arabs shot at us from behind. I saw three people running, being shot at, and falling to the ground near a grocery store,” said a 76-year-old man.
The RSF went for those who took refuge in mosques and schools. On the northern border of the town, a school complex was the destination of many women, children and injured self-defence group members who fled.
The attackers frequently broke into the classrooms in search of men and executed those they discovered, the HRW documented.
The News24 Africa Desk is supported by the Hanns Seidel Foundation. The stories produced through the Africa Desk and the opinions and statements that may be contained herein do not reflect those of the Hanns Seidel Foundation.
