Darfur food delivery 'threatened'

2008-03-10 12:04

Khartoum - The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) said on Monday that it was facing an "unprecedented" situation in Sudan's troubled Darfur region, with carjackings hindering food deliveries to some two million people.

WFP said some 37 of its trucks were missing and 23 drivers were unaccounted for as attacks by bandits against humanitarian workers had stepped up in the lawless province.

Beyond the carjackings, WFP said donations for its air operations had yet to come through, meaning it might have to suspend its flight service at a time when using Darfur's roads has become more volatile.

"This is an unprecedented situation," said Kenro Oshidari, WFP's representative in Sudan.

WFP flights 'cost $77m annually'

Oshidari said: "With a recent upsurge in insecurity in West Darfur and increased banditry on the roads throughout the region, the air operation is more important than ever. If it shut down, even for a brief period, vital relief would be denied to vulnerable civilians in Darfur."

An average of 8 000 aid workers used WFP's flights per month, which cost $77m a year to operate.

The past few months had seen a flare-up of violence in parts of Darfur, where government-backed militias had battled rebels who had demanded development for the impoverished region, leaving more than 200 000 people dead in five years of fighting.

Humanitarian workers had often complained that they struggled to reach those in need because of the ongoing violence, which sometimes directly affected the organisations.

Sapa-dpa

- SAPA