I. Introduction
1. The present report is submitted pursuant
to paragraphs 6, 13 and 16 of Security Council resolution 1556 (2004),
paragraph 15 of resolution 1564 (2004), paragraph 17 of resolution 1574
(2004) and paragraph 12 of resolution 1590 (2005).
II. Insecurity in Darfur
2. The past month coincided with the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, a period that usually enjoys a respite from conflict and violence, much as we witnessed in Darfur during Ramadan in 2004. Unfortunately, in my report for the month of September 2005 (S/2005/650), I described a sharp increase in violence that included clashes between the parties, attacks on villages and a further deterioration in security due to widespread banditry and lawlessness. Overall, the month of October saw a continuation of this extremely worrying trend.
3. At the same time, the frequency and intensity of direct clashes between the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A) and Government forces decreased relative to the previous month. Nevertheless, serious engagements were reported, such as the clash near Kutum, northern Darfur, at mid-month that resulted in dead and wounded among civilians and combatants and prompted more civilian displacements. Both SLM/A and the Government continue to show a chronic disregard for both the letter and the spirit of the ceasefire agreements they have signed.
4. According to the African Union (AU), most alleged violations of the ceasefire were attributable to the SLM/A. However, AU has reported that there were attacks during October by Government forces, operating either in apparent coordination with militia groups or alone, on villages such as Kabga and Um Bulli (both in northern Darfur). The Government's responsibilities in this regard are clear: it must prevent attacks on civilians by its own forces; and, it must immediately disarm the various militia groups, whether Government-aligned or independent, who continue to kill and loot with impunity.
5. The past month also saw attacks by militia on villages. In one particularly vicious incident on 23 October, militia carried out an attack on the Fur village of Tama (southern Darfur) that left dozens of civilians dead and many more injured.
Some 240 families who fled to Amkassara, a village about 37 kilometres north of Nyala, have been unable to return to harvest their crops. By 31 October, the attackers were still occupying Tama. It is deeply disturbing that this kind of forced displacement, which occurred on a massive scale in the early phases of the conflict in Darfur, continues to this day, with no apparent efforts being made by the Government to put a stop to those terrible crimes.
6. As was the case in September, the security situation in western Darfur remained very precarious in October. Even after promises by the State Government to implement joint military and police patrols on the highways in order to ensure security, lawlessness and banditry have reached such dangerous levels that all roads out of Geneina remain open to United Nations staff only with approved armed escorts. The tense situation within Geneina itself warranted a reduction of nonessential United Nations personnel on 12 October. The limited freedom of movement for United Nations staff in western Darfur has affected the delivery of humanitarian assistance. The deployment by the Government of additional police resources in October was a welcome step but the Government in Khartoum and the State Government must do much more to ensure that rule of law prevails.
7. The poor security situation in western Darfur is compounded by issues that straddle the Sudan-Chad border. Reports of defections from the Chadian army have highlighted the risk of transborder tribal ties internationalizing the conflict in Darfur. Moreover, criminal cross-border activities add yet one more dimension to the already challenging security environment. I call on the Governments of both the Sudan and Chad to pursue energetically strategies that will minimize the overspill of issues from one neighbour into the other, which might either complicate security issues for one or both countries and/or interfere with the work of humanitarian agencies operating in the border region.
8. The month of October also marked a terrible milestone for the African Union Mission in the Sudan (AMIS). On 8 October, five members of an AMIS patrol were killed - the mission's first such deaths - during a firefight with an armed group that had earlier ambushed and killed two civilian contractors in southern Darfur. The AMIS patrol stated that the attackers appeared to be members of the SLM/A, while the movement's leadership denied any involvement. This tragic event was followed the next day by a large-scale, though short-term, detention of AMIS personnel and advisers by a splinter faction of the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) near Tine, northern Darfur.
9. In yet another incident, an AMIS patrol was shot at near Tama, southern Darfur, on 27 October by unknown gunmen. This attack did not result in casualties. This unmistakable escalation of targeted violence against AMIS underscores the serious dangers and risks facing the AU force and the need for all parties to take the necessary measures to guarantee the safety and security of AU personnel in Darfur. I pay tribute to the courage and determination of the AU Mission in performing its vital mandate in Darfur.
10. In my June 2005 report on the situation in Darfur (S/2005/467), I highlighted the relative decrease in the number of deaths due to violence since early 2005. However, the months of September and October 2005 have recorded a rise in the number of people being killed in the region. In my next report, and after having analysed the relevant data, I will provide a clearer picture as to what degree those two months have reversed the declining trend of deaths due to violence that had characterized most of 2005.
11. During the first days of November, just after the end of this reporting period, an incident occurred that resulted in the violation of the freedom of movement of members of the panel of experts appointed by the Security Council to monitor the implementation of Security Council resolution 1591 (2005). The incident took place during the panel's latest visit to El Fasher. This is the second time members of the panel have been harassed by Government security agents in Darfur. My Special Representative sent a démarche regarding the incident to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 8 November. A follow-up meeting was held with the State Minister on 10 November. The Minister admitted that the behaviour of military intelligence "had been wrong". He assured my Special Representative that the panel members have freedom of movement in the pursuit of their mandated activities, and he made a commitment to ensuring that the court case against the United Nations security officer who had accompanied the panel members would be dismissed.
III. Protection and human rights
12. The ongoing violence caused a further displacement of civilian populations to camps. During October, thousands of civilians throughout the Darfur region fled to the outskirts of their villages, makeshift settlements and camps for internally displaced persons. The Zam Zam camp in northern Darfur absorbed the largest single influx of newly displaced persons, with over 6,000 new arrivals in October alone.
13. Farmers are also continuously harassed by militia and nomadic groups. In the Um Kadada area, northern Darfur, reports were rife on thefts of farm produce by militia, and in Singita, Dulu and Karande, south of Kass, southern Darfur, villagers have reported harassment by nomads and militia in the form of looting, banditry and the forced payment of protection "taxes". Repercussions resulting from the nonpayment of such taxes include the deliberate destruction of planted fields. Similar incidents were reported in Wadi Salih and Mukjar, western Darfur, where farmers complained of destroyed crops with no efforts or interventions from the authorities to protect them.
14. My previous monthly report on Darfur (S/2005/650) made reference to the commercial blockade by the Government of the Kalma camp for internally displaced persons in southern Darfur that has now been in place for five months. The blockade, which prevents the flow of critical goods and materials into the camp, seriously violates a significant number of provisions of international human rights and humanitarian law, including provisions of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. My Special Representative and his colleagues continue to seek the earliest removal of the blockade at both the local and state levels but the blockade remains in place and continues to have deleterious effects on the population. This situation is unacceptable, and I strongly urge the Government to lift the blockade without any further delay or precondition.
15. As the Council is aware, Kalma camp was a source of concern in October for two other reasons. First, on 23 October, Government police and national security officials entered the camp without providing prior notification to AMIS, aggressively forced their way into an international non-governmental organization's compound with weapons drawn and arrested two national staff members without any apparent cause. Second, and subsequent to the police raid, a large group of national staff members of international non-governmental organizations and local water authority employees were taken hostage by Kalma inhabitants in a protest over the arrest by the authorities of a sheikh within the camp. The situation was eventually resolved, but I strongly condemn this or any attack on or threat to humanitarian workers. All such attacks are contrary to international humanitarian law. Both the Government and internally displaced persons should respect humanitarian workers and the property of non-governmental organizations. In addition, due process and international human rights standards, which are an essential element of the Interim National Constitution, must be fully respected in any judicial proceedings following those events.
16. The upsurge in violence against civilian populations in Darfur seriously affected children. During the month of October, several children were killed and abducted in the region. In addition, despite my repeated expressions of concern on various occasions on the matter of child combatants, all parties continue to recruit children. I have again received troubling reports of children participating in hostilities in northern Darfur.
17. During the reporting period, the United Nations Mission in the Sudan (UNMIS) continued to document cases of serious violence against women and girls on a weekly basis. The problem of sexual and gender-based violence was particularly troubling in western Darfur, where UNMIS documented 21 cases: nine cases of rape, four cases of attempted rape and eight cases of assault. In one of the cases, two women informed United Nations human rights officers that on 2 October, a group of 10 armed men wearing khaki uniforms and riding horses and camels had raped them and four other women outside the Mornei camp for internally displaced persons. In another case, the victim was 15 years old. Not only am I deeply troubled about those reported abuses but it is also distressing that the victims continue to be reluctant to notify the police of incidents out of fear of retaliation and a lack of confidence in the authorities' capacity and willingness to conduct proper investigations.
18. At the same time, during the month of October, UNMIS was granted greater access to detention facilities in Darfur. In addition to accessing regular prison facilities, the State Director of National Security in Nyala (southern Darfur) allowed UNMIS to visit the town's national security detention facility for the first time. Of the five detainees interviewed by UNMIS, however, four reported being beaten during interrogations by members of the national security apparatus.
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