Sudanese Rebels In Darfur Camp

The Justice and Equality Movement has been spotted driving through Darfur refugee camps in Chad according to the BBC.  JEM is a Sudanese rebel group fighting against the Sudan government along with the Sudan Liberation Movement.  It’s rare to see armed personnel in a refugee camp because it is illegal  according to international refugee law and can potentially draw combatant fire upon the refugees.

JEM says that they have permission to be in the camp in order to re-fuel, get supplies and have maintenance work done on their vehicles.  However, their presence is making the refugees and aid workers uneasy because they realize the opposition could be close.  The BBC’s Celeste Hicks in Bahay says last month planes bombed three kilometres away from the camp, in what was believed to be Sudanese retaliation for JEM taking the Darfuri towns of Kornoi and Um Baru in May.

The Justice and Equality Movement originated in 2000 as a result of the publication of The Black Book. It was later learned that the leader of JEM, Khalil Ibrahim, was one of the authors of the book which outlines a history of disproportionate political control by the people of northern Sudan and marginalization of the rest of the country.