UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 8 (Xinhua) -- The UN Security Council on Wednesday condemned in a statement the recent intercommunal violence in West Darfur of Sudan, in which dozens of civilians were killed and tens of thousands displaced.
After being briefed by the UN assistant secretary-general for Africa on the latest situation, Dang Dinh Quy, the council's president for the month of January and Vietnam's permanent representative to the UN read out the statement to the press.
The council members underscored the need for continued progress in local mediation, peace building effort and economic development in order to ensure sustainable peace and stability, Quy said.
The members underlined their continuous support to the work of the government of Sudan, and commended the effort by Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, the statement said.
According to media reports, the intercommunal clashes that erupted on Dec. 29 were the worst in West Darfur for years, and the slowly emerging casualty count is at least 65 dead and over 50 injured.
The reports said the violence broke out after a dispute between Arab and African ethnic groups in the state capital of el-Geneina. Arab militiamen raided a camp for internally displaced people and attacked and burned several villages.
