Darfuris fear their new protectors
9 Jan 2021
Vacuum: A peacekeeper watches over the Khor Abeche camp for internal refugees, but after 17 years the United Nations-African Union Hybrid Operation in Darfur is withdrawing. Residents of the Kalma Camp (left) protest against the end of the peacekeeping mission. (Photo: UN Photo/Albert Gonzalez Farran)
For 13 years, United Nations and African Union peacekeepers have been stationed in the Sudanese region of Darfur. Their mission was to prevent a repeat of the genocide committed by forces aligned with ousted Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir, which left about half a million people dead. On 31 December, the peacekeepers’ mandate expired. Now, reports Ayin, Sudanese security forces including the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces previously called the Janjaweed when they backed Bashir are tasked with keeping the peace and protecting the hundreds of thousand internal refugees.