Darfur

A single town in Sudan's war-ravaged Darfur region has seen 10,000 to 15,000 people killed since April, with paramilitaries allied with Arab militias potentially committing crimes against humanity there, according to a U.N. report on Jan. 22.

Warring parties in Sudan - the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have agreed to a new 72-hour ceasefire. However, the BBC reported that fighting in the capital Khartoum and Darfur province continued.

The army claims to control most of the country. Hundreds have also been reported killed in the fighting.

Sudan accepted a mediation offer from Turkey to solve the border disputes with Ethiopia, a Sudanese official announced on Sept. 18.

An Antonov plane crashed in Sudan's western Darfur province, RIA Novosti reported, citing information on the Al-Arabia television channel.

The plane crashed immediately after taking off five kilometers from El Geneina Airport.

15 people have been reported dead, including the crew.

A controversial Sudanese counter-insurgency unit said on Nov. 5 it had seized 19 tonnes of hashish in war-torn Darfur, in one of the largest hauls ever reported in Sudan.

The South African government has a week to explain to judges why it defied a court order barring the Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir from leaving the country.

Worsening conflict in Darfur and an influx of people fleeing war in South Sudan helped push to almost seven million the number needing aid in Sudan, the UN said Wednesday.
      
The figure is a jump from the United Nations' previous estimate of 6.1 million, issued last year.