Aerial Bombardment in South Darfur Kills Four Civilians; Government of Sudan Declares it Accidental

(22 February 2013) At 9am on 21 February, the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) bombed Derib al Reih village in South Darfur using Antonov aircraft, killing four civilians and injuring thirty-seven.

The bombing killed four civilians, including two children. Thirty seven civilians were seriously injured, with some sustaining critical injuries, and had to be transferred to Nyala Military Hospital. Reliable sources informed the African Centre for Justice and Peace Studies (ACJPS) that there is no rebel presence in Derib al Reih or military installations in the village and surrounding area.

Below are the names of those killed.

1. Adnan Abdo Mohamed, (m), 15 years of age, student.
2. Nazar Mahjoub, (m), 15 years of age,student.
3. Aisha Mohamed Ahmed, (f), 60 years of age.
4. Hitham Babiker Abdalla, (m), 53 years of age, farmer.

Over 150 families from the community were displaced by the attacks and sought refuge in an open field near Nyala University, south of Nyala.

Derib al Reih is approximately 31 kilometers southeast of Nyala, the capital of South Darfur. The village is inhabited by approximately 450 people.

Alshrouq TV, a privately owned television station known for its close relation with the Government of Sudan (GoS), reported on their website that two civilians were killed when the airstrike hit the village by mistake. The intended target was reportedly rebel forces advancing in the region. The Deputy Governor of South Darfur, Abdul Karim Musa, attended the funeral of those killed, and reiterated to the mourners gathered that the aerial bombardment of Derib al Reih had been accidental. Deputy Governor Musa stated that the GoS will form a committee to investigate the bombing, but no official statement has yet been made.

The African Centre for Justice and Peace Studies (ACJPS) is gravely concerned that the airstrikes on civilians in Derib al Reih may constitute a war crime.

ACJPS calls on the Government of Sudan to:

• Immediately cease all aerial bombardment of civilians in Darfur and other regions of Sudan. Aerial bombardment of civilian targets is illegal under international law and prohibited by several UN Security Council resolutions on Sudan.
• Guarantee full humanitarian access to the displaced civilians in Nyala and those resident in Derib al Reih.
• Establish an independent and impartial investigative committee, and guarantee that their findings are published promptly and within a clear timeframe. Past investigations established by the GoS on human rights violations in Darfur, such as the killings of fifty eight civilians in Tabra, North Darfur in 2010, have never published their findings.
• Establish a compensation fund for the families of the victims and those injured. Medical treatment should be provided to those injured and currently hospitalised in Nyala.

Background 

Since the beginning of the conflict in Darfur in 2003, aerial bombardment has been a frequent counter insurgency tactic of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF). Civilian deaths have often been justified as ‘collateral damage’. In February 2013 there were media reports of aerial bombardment in Central Darfur and South Jebel Marra, as well as in Blue Nile’s internally displaced persons (IDP) camps.

The UN has reported an inability to access areas where aerial bombardment raids on civilian areas have occurred in the past.

On 8 February, the US reported that recent violence in North Darfur and Jebel Marra has displaced some 100,000 in need of humanitarian assistance, and that in January 2013 alone, more civilians were newly displaced by violence in Darfur than in all of 2012.

On 14 February 2013 the UN Security Council passed Resolution 2091, calling for a cessation of military action in the region, including aerial bombardment.

Contact: Osman Hummaida, Executive Director, African Centre for Justice and Peace Studies (ACJPS).

Phone: +44 7956 095738 (UK).

E-mail: osman@acjps.org.

This post is also available in: Arabic