U.N.: Aid to 100,000 Darfur Displaced in Jeopardy

Aid delivery is in jeopardy for an estimated 100,000 people affected by violence in Sudan's Darfur region unless authorities grant better access, the United Nations warned on Thursday.

One humanitarian agency has said the number of displaced people is the largest in recent years in Darfur, where a decade of civil war has been compounded by inter-Arab violence, banditry and tribal fighting.

But the true extent of the problem is unclear because U.N. workers have had only limited access to the affected area of Jebel Amir, the U.N. humanitarian agency OCHA said in its weekly bulletin.

Foreign aid workers, diplomats and journalists routinely face restrictions on their movement in Sudan's far west.

The country's top aid official blamed security conditions for the latest restrictions.

"The U.N. has informed the Sudanese authorities that it will not be able to continue providing food and other relief unless the relevant U.N. officials in North Darfur are permitted to travel to the area to register those in need of assistance and to carry out a comprehensive assessment," OCHA said.

Restrictions have been imposed even though the U.N. and its partners have delivered more than 700 tonnes of food and other relief since the unrest began in early January, OCHA said.

In the past month no foreign U.N. aid workers have been allowed into the affected area, it said, adding: "The restrictions on access are making it difficult to scale up the aid operation."

Suleiman Abdel Rahman, Sudan's Humanitarian Aid Commissioner, said in a statement to Agence France Presse that the government has no policy of denying access.

But he said there are tensions in Jebel Amir and "the security authorities in North Darfur want to be satisfied that the movement of the aid workers is secure."

North Darfur has seen a surge in violence over the past few months.

The mass displacement at Jebel Amir occurred after inter-Arab tribal fighting in a gold mining area.

"With tensions remaining high, there are fears that a new round of fighting may lead to yet more displacement," OCHA said, describing the humanitarian situation as dire.

The global aid agency Oxfam on Wednesday said the newly homeless are forced to defecate in the open, which could lead to disease.

With crops burned during the fighting, Oxfam also warned of possible food shortages.

Aid workers also report security problems on the main road leading to El Sireaf town, where most of the displaced have sought refuge.

Bad roads add to the logistical difficulties, OCHA said.

The U.S. administration's senior adviser to Darfur, Dane Smith, warned in December that funding for recovery of the war-ravaged area is in jeopardy unless restrictions on international aid personnel ease.

Before the latest unrest, 1.4 million people were living in camps for people displaced by Darfur's decade-long conflict, the U.N. said.

Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir is wanted by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity, genocide and war crimes allegedly committed in Darfur.