A weekly summary of the most important developments in the conflicts we see on the ground in Burma, Congo, Sudan, and beyond:
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon issued a statement saying that Sudan had violated the UNAMID peacekeeping agreement, that the peace efforts for Darfur have failed, and warned of increasing threats. Sudan’s UN Ambassador responding saying that UNAMID should leave Darfur.
However, diplomats believe new hostilities may be brewing. The SLA said government forces attacked civilians in Jabel Eissa and al-Harra in North Darfur on Wednesday. Reports of 7 IDPs being killed in a fight between residents and government troops.
Hundreds of former combatants in Darfur have been discharged from both the army, militia, and rebel groups.
A significant article came out about the LRA’s presence in South Sudan and the damage it is causing.
Other articles highlight the tenuous position of the Nuba Mountains and Southern Kordofan in the series of crises across Sudan.
Southern Sudan’s president Salva Kiir narrowly avoided being killed in a plane crash after leaving Uganda to urge Ugandans to lead the world in recognizing an independent South Sudan if they choose secession.
An op-ed in the Huffington Post answers the question “Why Sudan matters”
Significant movement in the ICC’s Congo trials: two warlords faced trial for war crimes this week and pleaded innocent. Meanwhile, key witnesses have been reported to have been threatened.
The UN said that Communal violence has claimed at least 100 lives and displaced 53,000 people since the end of October in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s northwest Orientale province, that the Congolese army is funneling weapons to rebel groups, and that rebels are having no difficulty circumventing sanctions.
Both a UN group of experts and Human Rights Watch separately criticized the international community’s response to the crisis in Congo.