U.S. and European media

December 15, 2022

Associated Press: Darfur groups pin high hopes on Obama team. Human rights activists waging a high-profile campaign to end the violence in Sudan's western Darfur region are pushing President-elect Barack Obama and his team to re-energize efforts to end the nearly six-year conflict. "There is a new window of opportunity," said Jerry Fowler, director of the Save Darfur Coalition, an umbrella group of 180 organizations that claim 130 million members and supporters. "We want them to take advantage of this incredible outpouring of enthusiasm in the rest of the world to the election and launch a sustained peace process to end this." Coalition members have put forward a six-point proposal they want to see the Obama team initiate now. The Obama camp has not addressed the specific proposals but has given them a general endorsement. "We welcome these recommendations," said Brooke Anderson, a national security spokeswoman for the Obama transition team. "President-elect Obama has repeatedly underscored his commitment to more effective action to end the genocide in Darfur."

Reuters: Up to 250 Killed In Darfur Tribal Clashes: Peacekeepers. As many as 250 people have died in separate tribal clashes in remote parts of Sudan's south Darfur region over the last week, peacekeepers said on Monday. The reports highlighted the growing turmoil in the region where arms flooding in to fuel a five-year conflict between government and rebels have also intensified long-running tribal rivalries. Joint U.N.-African Union UNAMID peacekeepers reported more than 100 people have died in continuing fighting between two groups from the Gimir tribe, around the village of Saysaban, west of Edd Al Fursan in south Darfur. It said it had received reports up to 500 members of the Arab Fellata and Salamat tribes attacked the Habbaniya village of Wad Hajam, near south Darfur's town of Buram, close to borders with southern Sudan and the Central African Republic. Around 5,000 were forced to flee as their homes were burned to the groups and six police officers were among the dead, said UNAMID.

BBC: Thousands flee after Sudan clash. Thousands of people have fled the disputed Sudanese oil town of Abyei after fighting which left one person dead, according to a Sudanese official. The shooting between members of the joint north-south army and police units came seven months after clashes risked re-igniting a bloody civil war. The head of the UN Mission in Sudan Ashraf Qazi said he deplored the violent incident. Abyei's deputy police commissioner said an argument broke out between soldiers and a market trader, adding that shots were fired when the police intervened. Gunfire continued to be heard across the town on three occasions since then but there were no reports of any other injuries.

Agence France Presse: Future UN force in Chad whittled down to 4,900. The UN force that will take over from the European mission in Chad and the Central African Republic will consist of some 4,900 troops and has been approved by Chad's president, a UN official said Friday. UN special envoy for Chad, Victor Angelo, told an open session of the UN Security Council that the UN force will be smaller than the 6,000-strong contingent initially planned to take over from EUFOR on March 15. In a new report out Friday, the UN chief outlined the latest plan for Chad, saying the UN force would be deployed permanently at half-battalion strength (400 troops) in six Chadian locations: Iriba, Guereda, Farchana, Goz Beida, Bahai and Koukou-Goz Amer.

The Darfur Daily News is a service of the Save Darfur Coalition. To subscribe to the Daily News, please email [email protected]. For media inquiries, please contact Ashley Roberts at (202) 478-6181, or [email protected].