Attacks on Darfur aid workers are rising

One year on from a much-heralded peace deal for Darfur, aid agencies have been forced to roll back operations and are facing an unprecedented level of attacks on personnel, according to United Nations maps seen by The Independent.

The Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA) was struck in May last year amid much fanfare in Abuja, Nigeria. But only one of the three main rebel factions signed it and the already dire situation in Darfur has worsened. The number of people in the region known to be affected by the conflict is almost four million, according to the UN. Of those, 900,712 cannot be reached by humanitarian workers.

"We are on the brink," said Oxfam's Alun McDonald. "In terms of violent attacks on aid workers things are worse than they have ever been in Darfur. Access to the people in need is at the lowest point since 2004.

"It is becoming increasingly difficult to do our job. We are still completely committed to staying but unless we see an improvement there is always the risk that the whole operation could collapse."

The UN's humanitarian access maps reveal the dramatic scale of the insecurity. The map dated 17 May 2006, just 12 days after the signing of the DPA, shows just three areas where it was impossible for aid agencies to operate - Kulbu in north-western Darfur, parts of the mountainous Jebel Marra region in central Darfur and a small enclave around El Taweisha in the east.

By 13 March this year - the last time the UN produced a humanitarian access map - the amount of territory considered unsafe for aid workers had quadrupled. Swaths of north, south and west Darfur which were once seen as safe now have only limited humanitarian access.

There are 14,000 aid workers and more than 80 agencies in Darfur, but the insecurity is forcing aid organisations to suspend operations across the region, with many actively considering whether they can continue to operate.

Delivering aid to Darfur's displaced is becoming increasingly difficult as aid workers come under attack from rebels, Arab militias and bandits. "In the past they would stop your car and steal a satellite phone," said one humanitarian official. "Now, they shoot to kill."

In the first two weeks of April, eight humanitarian vehicles were hijacked - two of them belonging to the UN. There were a further four car hijack attempts. Five convoys of humanitarian vehicles were ambushed.

There were two attempted break-ins at humanitarian compounds - one was successful, the other failed. There was one shooting incident at a humanitarian compound and four physical assaults on guards.

Sudan's government is continuing to arm groups across the region, say analysts. The proliferation of heavy weapons, including RPGs and mortars, allied to the complete lack of law and order, has led to the increase in violence.

Since the signing of the DPA the rebel groups have splintered and fragmented. There are now believed to be between 15 and 22 groups. "The level of violence is unprecedented," said Mr McDonald. "There are incidents every day. Aid agencies are being targeted, which wasn't happening before the DPA. Staff are quite frequently assaulted or beaten."

The experience of Mohammed, a Sudanese driver for an international aid agency, is typical of the new threats humanitarian workers endure. He was shot at by unidentified gunmen while driving a white four-wheel drive vehicle, clearly marked with the agency's logo.

Mohammed, who is now recovering in a Nyala hospital, was delivering food aid to a camp of internally displaced people (IDPs). A single bullet was shot through his left wrist and brushed against his right thigh, before finishing inside the thigh of his colleague, Halima, who was sitting in the passenger seat. Grabbing the wheel with his one good hand, Mohammed drove back to the nearest town - a 20-minute journey of unbearable agony.

Mohammed, who is still in hospital, is already thinking of when he will return to work. "I am angry with the people who attacked us, but what can I do? Everyone is fighting here," he said. "I am ready to continue. Even in the same place I am ready to drive there. The people there need food and aid - I will help them. We are facing difficulties but we cannot stop. They are suffering."