Misterei massacre
Misterei massacre | |
---|---|
Part of War in Sudan (2023) and the Battle of Geneina | |
Location | Misterei, West Darfur, Sudan |
Coordinates | 13°7′29.55″N 22°9′42.56″E / 13.1248750°N 22.1618222°E |
Date | May 27-28, 2023 |
Target | Masalit civilians[1] |
Deaths | 97 killed |
Injured | 160 injured |
Assailant | Janjaweed and Rapid Support Forces |
No. of participants | ~300 |
Between May 27 and 28, 2023,
Prelude
Throughout the war in Darfur, the town of Misterei has been a hub of violence between Arab tribes affiliated with the
In March 2023, the
On May 27, a battle broke out in Jabal Derindi, three kilometers away from Misterei, between Sudanese Forces and the RSF. Seventeen SAF soldiers were killed, and ten were injured.[4]
Massacre
Prior to the Misterei attack, a group of 300 RSF fighters and allied tribes surrounded the town on the night of May 27, with the exceptions of the south and west, where the fighters entered the town.
The first clashes began at Shorrong mountain right after sunrise, when Janjaweed launched an offensive from the west. Later offensives came from the north and south.[3] The Janjaweed came in waves, according to a veteran of the attacks, and many of the self-defense groups were spread out across and around the town in groups of 7 to 15.[3] The Masalit self-defense groups quickly fell to the Janjaweed.[3] Battles between the Sudanese Alliance and the Janjaweed lasted for three and a half hours, during which civilians stated the Arab fighters went house to house, killing darker-skinned Masalit and shouting "Kill the slave, kill the slave!"[4][3]
Wounded civilians were brought to the Atik mosque, although Janjaweed stormed the place and shot at the wounded and those attending to them.[6][3] After killing several people, Arab fighters cheered "We killed the zorga! (a slur for black people)."[3] The Janjaweed also looted houses, farms, and shops, before burning down many neighborhoods.[3] The Misterei market was completely looted and torched.[4] Satellite imagery taken on June 3 showed the entire town burnt down.[3]
Aftermath
Later in the day on May 29, remaining residents buried the bodies of slain civilians in Misterei.[4] Around 80 bodies were buried in a mass grave, located by the Misterei hospital in the southeastern part of the town.[3][4] The injured were taken to Adré or Abashi for treatment.[4] The first mass grave contained fifty-nine bodies, mostly of men, and was done quickly due to fear of further Janjaweed attacks.[3] In the following days, more bodies were buried, bringing the toll to 97 killed.[3] 160 people were injured as well.[4]
Nine hundred families that same day fled for Chad.[4] Of the original population of 26,000, 17,000 had fled to the Chadian town of Gongour.[3]
The RSF dismissed claims that they were involved in the massacre, referring to it as "a tribal conflict."[6]
Further reading
- "Sudan: Darfur Town Destroyed | Human Rights Watch". Human Rights Watch. 2023-07-11.
References
- ^ "Sudan: Darfur Town Destroyed | Human Rights Watch". 11 July 2023.
- ^ a b Dabanga (2020-07-27). "West Darfur: At least 60 dead in Misterei massacre". Dabanga Radio TV Online. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n "Sudan: Darfur Town Destroyed". Human Rights Watch. 2023-07-11. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o acjps. "Darfur: Intertribal conflict results to the death of approximately 90 people and injuring of 160 others in Misterei, West Darfur – African Centre for Justice and Peace Studies". Retrieved 2023-09-25.
- ^ "How Arab fighters carried out a rolling ethnic massacre in Sudan". Reuters. 2023-09-22. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
- ^ a b c d Rhodes, Hafiz Haroun and Tom (2023-07-21). "DARFUR: The road from Misterei is full of corpses; the town empty save for the Janjaweed and RSF". African Arguments. Retrieved 2023-09-25.