File Photo: Internally displaced persons (IDPs) fleeing from tribe clashes in Balela locality rest after arriving at Kalma camp in Darfur, Sudan July 24,2017. (Xinhua/REUTERS)

UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 22 (Xinhua) -- Internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Sudan's Darfur region face a series of security challenges although the overall security situation remains relatively calm, warned an African Union/United Nations (AU/UN) joint envoy on Monday.

"Despite the improved security situation, there is continuing concern among IDPs over systematic attacks, assaults, farm destructions, harassment, land occupation issues and livestock theft," said Jeremiah Mamabolo, AU/UN joint special representative and head of the AU/UN Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID).

During the four months ending Oct. 8, six inter-communal clashes over land and livestock theft, resulting in 18 fatalities, were reported, Mamabolo told the Security Council in a briefing.

UNAMID continues to focus on early warning, preventive measures, capacity-building and efforts to address the root causes of conflicts in collaboration with government authorities, community leaders and relevant institutions, he said via a video link from Johannesburg, South Africa.

During the period, the security situation in Darfur remained relatively calm and peaceful, with the exception of pockets in the Jebel Marra area where armed conflict between government and rebel forces continued, said Mamabolo.

The number of cases of human rights violations and abuses also dropped, he said.

UNAMID documented 134 new cases involving 304 victims in the June-October 2018 period, compared with 169 cases involving 508 victims during the previous four-month period, he said.

Preparations are under way to start a constructive discussion with the Sudanese government on the need to establish a country office of the Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights in Sudan, said Mamabolo.