UNITED NATIONS, July 28 (Xinhua) -- Humanitarians at the United Nations said on Tuesday that they are "extremely concerned" about the recent deadly violence in Sudan's Darfur.
A recent escalation in violence in different parts of the region has led to the loss of lives and livelihoods and population displacement, said the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
Reports from humanitarian organizations point to several serious incidents in different villages in South, West and North Darfur states over the last few weeks that have left several villages and houses burned, markets and shops looted and infrastructure damaged.
Published reports said about 80 people were killed last week by unidentified raiders.
In one of the latest incidents on Saturday, about 60 people were killed and nearly 90 others injured in Masteri Town, 48 km from El Geneina, the capital of West Darfur, according to official figures. The attack in Masteri alone affected more than 2,000 families.
The Masteri incident is causing displacement not only in the town but in surrounding areas where people are leaving their homes fearing violence. Humanitarian partner organizations of OCHA are conducting assessments with the government to evaluate the impact and required assistance, said the UN agency.
OCHA said almost 2.8 million people are estimated to be severely food insecure across Darfur, more than 545,000 of them in West Darfur alone.
Despite insecurity and COVID-19-related restrictions, humanitarian organizations are helping millions of people every day, said OCHA. "Between April and June, we reached more than 2.3 million people with life-saving food and livelihood assistance in Darfur."
However, more funding is urgently needed, with the Sudan humanitarian response plan just 35 percent funded, said OCHA.
Since 2003, violence in Darfur has led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people and the displacement of millions more. Enditem
